Assessment of Morphological Variation in Irish Brassica oleracea Species

Abstract

This study aimed at assessing the morphological variation in 25 accessions of an Irish collection of Brassica oleracea using 44 morphological traits. The morphological traits showed a pronounced variation among accessions. Vegetative preflowering and maturity traits revealed higher variation than seedling traits. Of the 44 morphological descriptors used, 28 were significantly different and proved useful in examining diversity and differentiating among accessions studied. Principal component analysis (PCA) showed variation among accessions, where 87.24% of the total variation in the morphological data was separated on the first five components, indicating a high degree of correlation among traits studied. Cluster analysis grouped the 25 accessions into 4 main groups, corresponding to kales, cauliflowers, cabbages and sprouts, and also showed a sort of correlation between clustering pattern and eco-geographical distribution of the accessions. Furthermore, this study identified 9 highly diverse accessions, providing opportunities for optimising parental sources in future breeding programs to develop new or more productive Brassica varieties. Morphological traits were deemed useful for assessing the diversity and relationships in Irish Brassica oleracea species.

A classification study for chrysanthemum (Chrysanthemum ×grandiflorum Tzvelv.) cultivars based on multivariate statistical analyses

“…The study of Guo et al () illustrated that the floral characters of the squaring stage, blooming stage, and number and length of the petals were the key characters that affected the combination of flower‐head‐type elements of Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn. For Brassica oleracea L., the length of the pedicels and the branching patterns of the floral top were key factors that affected the flower head type of the genus (El‐Esawi et al, ).…”

“…Multivariate statistical analysis, one subscience derived from classical statistics, is a comprehensive analysis method that analyzes the statistical patterns of multiple objects and indices when they correlate with each other, which is very suitable for the research of agricultural science (Kachigan, 1991). A variety of methods from multivariate statistical analysis have been successfully applied in the study of cultivar classification, such as the Oxalidaceae, Euphorbiaceae, Hibiscus, Nelumbonaceae, Fabaceae, Anacardiaceae, and Brassicaceae species (Abdullah et al, 2006;Karimi et al, 2009;Cacho et al, 2010;Fougère-Danezan et al, 2010;Guo et al, 2010;Nwangburuka et al, 2011;El-Esawi et al, 2012). Moreover, these methods have also been widely applied in zootaxy (Adams et al, 2009;Emlet, 2010;Grizante et al, 2010), phytoecology (Björklund et al, 2009), and medicine (Van Dam et al, 2009;Michael et al, 2010;Jiang et al, 2011;Hwang et al, 2012).…”

Introductory Chapter: Assessment and Conservation of Genetic Diversity in Plant Species

“…Plant breeders are able to develop large amount of new productive crops that are of improved tolerance to a variety of diseases and pests as well as its enhanced ability to stand against a changing world. This depends on the volume and range of genetic variation among individuals within the same species, which allows for designing sampling programs [2,[4][5][6]. Accordingly, geneticists have focused on evaluating genetic differences within populations using morphological, cytological, biochemical, and molecular markers to identify the characteristics of domestication, propagation, and breeding techniques as well as conservation of plant genetic materials [2].…”

Genetic diversity and evolution ofBrassicagenetic resources: from morphology to novel genomic technologies – a review

“…Morphological variation in plant species has been described for traits which are controlled by a single or multiple gene systems. The greater the number of gene loci determining the trait, the more continuous the variability will be (Ayala, 1982; El-Esawi et al ., 2012a). The expression of morphological traits is affected by the environment.…”

“…Judd et al (1999) also recorded 419 genera and 4130 species, while Warwick et al (2006) recorded 338 genera and 3709 species belonging to this family. Brassica species play an essential role in horticulture and agriculture, as well as contributing to the health of populations around the world (Rakow, 2004; El-Esawi, 2012; El-Esawi et al ., 2012a). They are important sources of vegetable oil, vegetables and condiments (Zhao, 2007).…”