Identification of Major QTLs Associated With First Pod Height and Candidate Gene Mining in Soybean

Abstract

First pod height (FPH) is a quantitative trait in soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] that affects mechanized harvesting. A compatible combination of the FPH and the mechanized harvester is required to ensure that the soybean is efficiently harvested. In this study, 147 recombinant inbred lines, which were derived from a cross between ‘Dongnong594’ and ‘Charleston’ over 8 years, were used to identify the major quantitative trait loci (QTLs) associated with FPH. Using a composite interval mapping method with WinQTLCart (version 2.5), 11 major QTLs were identified. They were distributed on five soybean chromosomes, and 90 pairs of QTLs showed significant epistatic associates with FPH. Of these, 3 were main QTL × main QTL interactions, and 12 were main QTL × non-main QTL interactions. A KEGG gene annotation of the 11 major QTL intervals revealed 8 candidate genes related to plant growth, appearing in the pathways K14486 (auxin response factor 9), K14498 (serine/threonine-protein kinase), and K13946 (transmembrane amino acid transporter family protein), and 7 candidate genes had high expression levels in the soybean stems. These results will aid in building a foundation for the fine mapping of the QTLs related to FPH and marker-assisted selection for breeding in soybean.

Identification of Soybean Genes Whose Expression is Affected by the Ensifer fredii HH103 Effector Protein NopP

“…The experimental RIL population used in this study (‘Charleston’ × ‘Dongnong594′, n = 150) originated from two individual lines, Charleston and Dongnong594 [ 81 ]. To map QTLs controlling nodule-related traits in the RIL population of ‘Charleston’ × ‘Dongnong594′, we used the method of composite interval mapping [ 61 ], with WinQTL Cartographer [ 61 ].…”

QTL Mapping and Data Mining to Identify Genes Associated With the Sinorhizobium fredii HH103 T3SS Effector NopD in Soybean

“…The experimental RIL population used in this study (n = 150) was derived from the cross of Charleston and Dongnong594 (Jiang et al, 2018). A high-density genetic map with 5,308 specific locus amplified fragment sequencing (SLAF-seq) markers had been constructed via this population (Qi et al, 2014).…”

Impacts of genomic research on soybean improvement in East Asia

“…To introduce the resistance against Micosphaera diffusa Cooke & Peck, which causes powdery mildew disease (PMD), to Chinese soybean cultivars, researchers have made use of the PMD-resistant soybean cultivar BRSMG68 (B13) from Brazil (Jiang et al 2018). The PMD resistance locus was mapped to a 188-kb region on chromosome 16 of B13 that contains 17 disease resistance genes accounting for 78% of the phenotypic differences within the mapping population (Jiang et al 2018).…”

“…Pod distribution on the soybean plant also affects the harvest index and is influenced by a number of minor-effect loci. Using 7-year worth of data, a study identified 11 major QTLs and 90 epistatic pairs controlling the first pod height (Jiang et al 2018). Another study identified 47 QTLs associated with the distribution of pods with different numbers of seeds at the upper, middle, and lower sections of the soybean plant (Ning et al 2018).…”