World population is expected to reach 9.2 × 109 people by 2050. Feeding them will require a boost in crop productivity using innovative approaches. Current agricultural production is very dependent on large amounts of inputs and water availability is a major limiting factor. In addition, the loss of genetic diversity and the threat of climate change make a change of paradigm in plant breeding and agricultural practices necessary. Average yields in all major crops are only a small fraction of record yields, and drought and soil salinity are the main factors responsible for yield reduction. Therefore there is the need to enhance crop productivity by improving crop adaptation. Here we review the present situation and propose the development of crops tolerant to drought and salt stress for addressing the challenge of dramatically increasing food production in the near future. The success in the development of crops adapted to drought and salt depends on the efficient and combined use of genetic engineering and traditional breeding tools. Moreover, we propose the domestication of new halophilic crops to create a ‘saline agriculture’ which will not compete in terms of resources with conventional agriculture.

The need to boost agricultural production in the coming decades in a climate change scenario requires new approaches for the development of new crop varieties that are more resilient and more efficient in the use of resources. Crop wild relatives (CWRs) are a source of variation for many traits of interest in breeding, in particular tolerance to abiotic and biotic stresses. However, their potential in plant breeding has largely remained unexploited. CWRs can make an effective contribution to broadening the genetic base of crops and to introgressing traits of interest, but their direct use by breeders in breeding programs is usually not feasible due to the presence of undesirable traits in CWRs (linkage drag) and frequent breeding barriers with the crop. Here we call for a new approach, which we tentatively call 'introgressiomics', which consists of mass scale development of plant materials and populations with introgressions from CWRs into the genetic background of crops. Introgressiomics is a form of

Phenolic compounds have numerous beneficial effects on human health. In consequence, the development of new varieties with higher content of phenolics is of interest for the improvement of the nutritional quality of eggplant (Solanum melongena L.). However, the oxidation of eggplant phenolics causes browning of the cut surfaces of the fruit and reduces its apparent quality. The authors investigated the relationship among, as well as the variation and heritability of, the content of phenolics, ascorbic acid, and soluble solids; pH; and the degree of browning and color difference of the cut surface of the fruit flesh in a collection of 69 eggplant varieties. These included landraces from different origins, commercial varieties, experimental hybrids, and four accessions of the related S. aethiopicum L. and S. macrocarpon L. species. Analyses of variance revealed significant differences among the materials studied for all traits considered. The concentration of phenolics in S. melongena spanned a threefold range, although the highest (1122 mg·kg−1) and lowest (134 mg·kg−1) concentrations of phenolics were found in S. macrocarpon and S. aethiopicum respectively. Concentrations of ascorbic acid were very low, a mean 27 times lower than those of phenolics, and soluble solids content ranged from 3.60% to 6.60% with a pH that ranged from 5.01 to 5.93. Commercial varieties had, as a mean, a 20% lower concentration of phenolics than landraces, as well as a lower degree of browning and color difference. Positive correlations existed between phenolic concentration and degree of browning (r = 0.388) and color difference (0.477), although only 15.1% and 22.8% of the total variation in degree of browning and color difference, respectively, could be attributed to variation in phenolics. Ascorbic acid, soluble solids content, and pH were not correlated to either degree of browning or color difference. The heritability was moderate for phenolic concentration (0.50) and high for degree of browning (0.71) and color difference (0.82). The information obtained indicates that there are opportunities for the development of new varieties with a high concentration of phenolics and low or moderate browning.

Wild relatives represent a source of variation for many traits of interest for eggplant (Solanum melongena) breeding, as well as for broadening the genetic base of this crop. However, interspecific hybridization with wild relatives has been barely used in eggplant breeding programs. As initiation of an introgression breeding program we performed 1424 interspecific hybridizations between six accessions of eggplant from the Occidental and Oriental groups and 19 accessions of 12 wild species from the primary (Solanum incanum and Solanum insanum), secondary (Solanum anguivi, Solanum dasyphyllum, Solanum lichtensteinii, Solanum linnaeanum, Solanum pyracanthos, Solanum tomentosum, and Solanum violaceum), and tertiary (Solanum elaeagnifolium, Solanum sisymbriifolium, and Solanum torvum) genepools. Fruit set, hybrid seed, and seed germination were obtained between Solanum melongena and all wild species of the primary and secondary genepools. The highest fruit set percentage and quantity of seeds per fruit were obtained with the two primary genepool species S. incanum and S. insanum as well as with some secondary genepool species, like S. anguivi, S. dasyphyllum, or S. lichtensteinii, although some differences among species were observed depending on the direction of the hybridization. For small-fruited wild species, the number of seeds per fruit was lower when using them as maternal parent. Regarding tertiary genepool species, fruit set was obtained only in interspecific hybridizations of eggplant with S. sisymbriifolium and S. torvum, although the fruit of the former were parthenocarpic. However, it was possible to rescue viable interspecific hybrids with S. torvum. In total we obtained 58 interspecific hybrid combinations (excluding reciprocals) between eggplant and wild relatives. Some differences were observed among S. melongena accessions in the degree of success of interspecific hybridization, so that the number of hybrid combinations obtained for each accession ranged between 7 (MEL2) and 16 (MEL1). Hybridity of putative interspecific hybrid plantlets was confirmed with a morphological trait (leaf prickliness) and 12 single nucleotide polymorphism markers. The results show that eggplant is amenable to interspecific hybridization with a large number of wild species, including tertiary genepool materials. These hybrid materials are the starting point for introgression breeding in eggplant and in some cases might also be useful as rootstocks for eggplant grafting.

Volatile constituents of ripe fruits of 16 Capsicum accessions from the annuum-chinense-frutescens complex, with different aroma impressions and geographical origins, were isolated by headspace-solid phase microextraction (HS-SPME) and analyzed by gas chromatography-olfactometry-mass spectrometry (GC-sniffing port-MS). More than 300 individual compounds could be detected in the studied genotypes; most of them could be identified by comparing mass spectra and retention times with authentic reference substances or literature data. Esters and terpenoids were the main groups, although other minor compounds, such as nitrogen and sulfur compounds, phenol derivatives, norcarotenoids, lipoxygenase derivatives, carbonyls, alcohols, and other hydrocarbons, were also identified. The sniffing test revealed that the diversity of aromas found among the studied cultivars is due to qualitative and quantitative differences of, at least, 23 odor-contributing volatiles (OCVs). C. chinense, and C. frutescens accessions, with fruity/exotic aromas, were characterized by a high contribution of several esters and ionones and a low or nil contribution of green/vegetable OCVs. Different combinations of fruity/exotic and green/vegetable OCVs would explain the range of aroma impressions found among C. annuum accessions. Implications of these findings for breeding and phylogeny studies in Capsicum are also discussed.