S orghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench] is a major cereal crop grown on nearly 42 million ha worldwide for food, fodder, fiber, and fuel (FAOSTAT, 2013). It serves as a staple food crop for millions of people, predominantly in developing countries of Africa and Asia. Among the cereals, sorghum displays exceptional tolerance to heat and drought, and its complex biochemical and morphological characteristics offers an advantage of enhanced C4 carbon assimilation even at high temperatures (Paterson, 2008;Shoemaker et al., 2010). These characteristics make sorghum an attractive crop in both subsistence-and commercial-farming operations. However, a number of biotic and abiotic stresses are known An additional major QTL on chromosome 5 of the SC414-12E genome explained from 20 to 39% of the phenotypic variance and was observed in four of the six environments tested.Resequencing of the genomes of resistant cultivars SC155-14E and SC414-12E facilitated a preliminary survey of the coding regions of genes annotated as playing a role in host defense. The resequenced genomes of the resistant genotypes and the linkage mapping resources represent information relevant for more detailed molecular characterization of genes conditioning anthracnose resistance in this tropical cereal. The identification of QTL conferring anthracnose resistance and the identification of single-nucleotide polymorphisms linked to these loci will provide the necessary molecular tools for markerassisted introgression of durable anthracnose resistance into elite sorghum inbreds.

Anthracnose, caused by the fungal pathogen Colletotrichum sublineolum Henn. ex. Sacc. and Trotter 1913, is an economically damaging disease of sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench] in hot and humid production regions of the world. Control of anthracnose is almost exclusively through the use of genetic resistance. To further elucidate genetic resistance to anthracnose, a recombinant inbred line population derived from the cross of BTx623 (susceptible) and SC748‐5 (resistant) was created. A linkage map was constructed using 117 F5 individuals that were genotyped using Digital Genotyping, a genotyping‐by‐sequencing method developed specifically for C4 grasses, on an Illumina GAIIx. The linkage map consists of 619 single nucleotide polymorphism markers and three microsatellites with a total map length of 1269.9 cM. The population was phenotyped for anthracnose in four different environments. Using both composite interval mapping and inclusive composite interval mapping (ICIM), one major quantitative trait locus (QTL) on chromosome 5 was consistently identified as the source of anthracnose resistance in all environments. Sequencing genomic DNA from SC748‐5 and comparison to BTx623 genomic sequence revealed numerous amino acid changes in annotated disease‐resistance genes located in the area under the anthracnose QTL. This suggests that the genetic architecture for anthracnose resistance in SC748‐5 is not under the control of one gene but, more likely, a linkage block containing several resistance genes.

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a chronic condition in which excess lipids accumulate in the liver and can lead to a range of progressive liver disorders including non-alcoholic steatohepatitis, liver cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma. While lifestyle and diet modifications have proven to be effective as NAFLD treatments, they are not sustainable in long-term and currently no pharmacological therapies are approved to treat NAFLD. Our previous studies demonstrated that cinnabarinic acid (CA), a novel endogenous Aryl hydrocarbon Receptor (AhR) agonist activates AhR target gene, Stanniocalcin 2 and confers cytoprotection against a plethora of ER/oxidative stressors. In this study, the hepatoprotective and anti-steatotic properties of CA were examined against free fatty acid-induced in vitro and high-fat diet-fed in vivo NAFLD models. The results demonstrated that CA treatment significantly lowered weight gain and attenuated hepatic lipotoxicity both before and after established fatty liver, thereby protecting against steatosis, inflammation and liver injury. CA mitigated intracellular free fatty acid uptake concomitant with the downregulation of CD36/fatty acid translocase. Genes involved in fatty acid and triglyceride synthesis were also downregulated in response to CA treatment. Additionally, suppressing AhR and Stc2 expression using RNA interference in vitro verified that the hepatoprotective effects of CA were absolutely dependent on both AhR and its target, Stc2. Collectively, our results demonstrate that endogenous AhR agonist, CA confers hepatoprotection against NAFLD by regulating hepatic fatty acid uptake and lipogenesis.

Genotypic variance is necessary for trait improvement because limited diversity can reduce genetic gains in crop improvement. To maintain genetic diversity, a wealth of germplasm exists in the USDA-ARS sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench] collection, but most of the accessions are not adapted to temperate climates. To address this issue, the Reinstated Sorghum Conversion program (RSC, ∼2009-2014) converted 155 tropical accessions to combine height and early maturing F 3 and BC 1 F 3 families.Here, 11 germplasm lines Tx3429 to Tx3439 (Reg. no. GP-889, PI 692640 to Reg. no. GP-899, PI 692650) released by Texas A&M AgriLife Research in 2019 and derived from the RSC program are described. This germplasm was derived from F 3 , BC 1 F 3 , and BC 1 F 4 RSC families that were selected based on testcross hybrid performance for either grain or silage production. Six lines are grain sorghum pollinators, one line is a seed parent, and four lines are silage pollinators. These lines combined agronomic productivity with greater genetic diversity as confirmed via genotyping-by-sequencing.These 11 parental germplasms are being released to provide new genetic diversity for forage and grain hybrid improvement programs.

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