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With the growing limitations on arable land, alfalfa (a widely cultivated, low-input forage) is now being selected to extend cultivation into saline lands for low-cost biofeedstock purposes. Here, minerals and transcriptome profiles were compared between two new salinity-tolerant North American alfalfa breeding populations and a more salinity-sensitive western Canadian alfalfa population grown under hydroponic saline conditions. All three populations accumulated two-fold higher sodium in roots than shoots as a function of increased electrical conductivity. At least 50% of differentially expressed genes (p < 0.05) were down-regulated in the salt-sensitive population growing under high salinity, while expression remained unchanged in the saline-tolerant populations. In particular, most reduction in transcript levels in the salt-sensitive population was observed in genes specifying cell wall structural components, lipids, secondary metabolism, auxin and ethylene hormones, development, transport, signalling, heat shock, proteolysis, pathogenesis-response, abiotic stress, RNA processing, and protein metabolism. Transcript diversity for transcription factors, protein modification, and protein degradation genes was also more strongly affected in salt-tolerant CW064027 than in salt-tolerant Bridgeview and salt-sensitive Rangelander, while both saline-tolerant populations showed more substantial up-regulation in redox-related genes and B-ZIP transcripts. The report highlights the first use of bulked genotypes as replicated samples to compare the transcriptomes of obligate out-cross breeding populations in alfalfa.

The architecture of the Brassica napus genome is marked by its evolutionary origins. The genome of B. napus was formed from the hybridization of two closely related diploid Brassica species, both of which evolved from an hexaploid ancestor. The extensive whole genome duplication events in its near and distant past result in the allotetraploid genome of B. napus maintaining multiple copies of most genes, which predicts a highly complex and redundant transcriptome that can confound any expression analyses. A stringent assembly of 142,399 B. napus expressed sequence tags allowed the development of a well-differentiated set of reference transcripts, which were used as a foundation to assess the efficacy of available tools for identifying and distinguishing transcripts in B. napus; including microarray hybridization and 3' anchored sequence tag capture. Microarray platforms cannot distinguish transcripts derived from the two progenitors or close homologues, although observed differential expression appeared to be biased towards unique transcripts. The use of 3' capture enhanced the ability to unambiguously identify homologues within the B. napus transcriptome but was limited by tag length. The ability to comprehensively catalogue gene expression in polyploid species could be transformed by the application of cost-efficient next generation sequencing technologies that will capture millions of long sequence tags.

The genetic control of seed glucosinolate content in oilseed rape was investigated using two intervarietal backcross populations. Four QTLs segregating in the population derived from a Brassica napus L. 'Victor' x Brassica napus L. 'Tapidor' cross, together accounting for 76% of the phenotypic variation, were mapped. Three of these loci also appeared to control the accumulation of seed glucosinolates in a Brassica napus L. 'Bienvenu' x 'Tapidor' cross, and accounted for 86% of the phenotypic variation. The three QTLs common to both populations mapped to homoeologous regions of the B. napus genome, suggesting that seed glucosinolate accumulation is controlled by duplicate genes. It was possible to extend the comparative analysis of QTLs controlling seed glucosinolate accumulation by aligning the published genetic maps generated by several research groups. This comparative mapping demonstrated that high-glucosinolate varieties often carry low-glucosinolate alleles at one or more of the loci controlling seed glucosinolate accumulation.

Recent oilseed rape breeding has produced low glucosinolate cultivars that yield proteinaceous meal suitable for animal feed. The low glucosinolate character was introduced into modern cultivars from Brassica napus 'Bronowski', a cultivar that is agronomically inferior in most other respects. Residual segments of 'Bronowski' genotype in modern cultivars probably cause reduced yield, poorer winter hardiness, and lower oil content. The quantity and distribution of the 'Bronowski' genotype in the modern oilseed rape cultivar Brassica napus 'Tapidor' was investigated using a segregating population derived from a cross between 'Tapidor' and its high glucosinolate progenitor. This population was analyzed with 65 informative Brassica RFLP probes and a genetic linkage map, based on the segregation at 77 polymorphic loci, was constructed. The mapping identified 15 residual segments of donor genotype in 'Tapidor', which together occupy approximately 29% of the B. napus genome. Mapping the loci that control variation for the accumulation of total seed glucosinolates in the segregating population has identified three loci that together explain >90% of the variation for this character. All of these loci are in donor segments of the 'Tapidor' genome. This result shows the extent to which conventional breeding programmes have difficulty in eliminating residual segments of donor genotype from elite material.

The progenitor diploid genomes (A and C) of the amphidiploid Brassica napus are extensively duplicated with 73% of genomic clones detecting two or more duplicate sequences within each of the diploid genomes. This comprehensive duplication of loci is to be expected in a species that has evolved through a polyploid ancestor. The majority of the duplicate loci within each of the diploid genomes were found in distinct linkage groups as collinear blocks of linked loci, some of which had undergone a variety of rearrangements subsequent to duplication, including inversions and translocations. A number of identical rearrangements were observed in the two diploid genomes, suggesting they had occurred before the divergence of the two species. A number of linkage groups displayed an organization consistent with centric fusion and (or) fission, suggesting this mechanism may have played a role in the evolution of Brassica genomes. For almost every genetically mapped locus detected in the A genome a homologous locus was found in the C genome; the collinear arrangement of these homologous markers allowed the primary regions of homoeology between the two genomes to be identified. At least 16 gross chromosomal rearrangements differentiated the two diploid genomes during their divergence from a common ancestor.

To perform a detailed study of genome evolution in the natural Brassica amphidiploid B. juncea, we have constructed two linkage maps based on RFLP (restriction fragment length polymorphism) markers; one generated from a cross between a resynthesized B. juncea (a chromosome doubled interspecific B. rapa x B. nigra hybrid) and a natural B. juncea cultivar, the other from a cross between two B. juncea cultivars. By using a common cultivar in both crosses, the two maps could be unambiguously integrated. All loci exhibited disomic inheritance of parental alleles in the natural x resynthesized cross, showing that B. rapa chromosomes paired exclusively with their A-genome homologues in B. juncea and that B. nigra chromosomes likewise paired with their B-genome homologues. The maps derived from the two crosses were also perfectly collinear. Furthermore, these maps were collinear with maps of the diploid progenitor species (B. nigra and B. rapa) produced using the same set of RFLP probes. These data indicate that the genome of B. juncea has remained essentially unchanged since polyploid formation. Our observations appear to refute the suggestion that the formation of polyploid genomes is accompanied by rapid change in genome structure.

An F1 individual derived from a cross between two distinct lines of spring oilseed rape (Brassica napus) was used to produce a pair of complementary backcross populations, each consisting of 90 individuals. The F1 donated male gametes to the Male population and female gametes to the Female population. Genetic maps were generated from both populations and aligned using 117 common loci to form an integrated genome map of B. napus with 243 RFLP-defined loci. A comparison of the frequency and distribution of crossovers in the two populations of F1 gametes (assayed in the Male and Female populations) detected no differences. The genetic maps derived from the Male and Female populations each consisted of 19 linkage groups spanning 1544 and 1577 cM, respectively. The maps were aligned with other B. napus maps, and all 19 equivalent linkage groups were unambiguously assigned. The genetic size and general organisation of the new maps were comparable with those of pre-existing B. napus maps in most respects, except that the levels of polymorphism in the constituent A and C genomes were unusually similar in the new cross.

A RFLP map of Brassica napus, consisting of 277 loci arranged in 19 linkage groups, was produced from genetic segregation in a combined population of 174 doubled-haploid microspore-derived lines. The integration of this map with a B. napus map derived from a resynthesized B. napus x oilseed rape cross allowed the 10 linkage groups of the B. napus A genome and the 9 linkage groups of the C genome to be identified. Collinear patterns of marker loci on different linkage groups suggested potential partial homoeologues. RFLP patterns consistent with aberrant chromosomes were observed in 9 of the 174 doubled-haploid lines. At least 4 of these lines carried nonreciprocal, homoeologous translocations. These translocations were probably the result of homoeologous recombination in the amphidiploid genome of oilseed rape, suggesting that domesticated B. napus is unable to control chromosome pairing completely. Evidence for genome homogenization in oilseed rape is presented and its implications on genetic mapping in amphidiploid species is discussed. The level of polymorphism in the A genome was higher than that in the C genome and this might be a general property of oilseed rape crosses.

A genetic linkage map consisting of 399 RFLP-defined loci was generated from a cross between resynthesized Brassica napus (an interspecific B. rapa x B. oleracea hybrid) and "natural" oilseed rape. The majority of loci exhibited disomic inheritance of parental alleles demonstrating that B. rapa chromosomes were each pairing exclusively with recognisable A-genome homologues in B. napus and that B. oleracea chromosomes were pairing similarly with C-genome homologues. This behaviour identified the 10 A genome and 9 C genome linkage groups of B. napus and demonstrated that the nuclear genomes of B. napus, B. rapa, and B. oleracea have remained essentially unaltered since the formation of the amphidiploid species, B. napus. A range of unusual marker patterns, which could be explained by aneuploidy and nonreciprocal translocations, were observed in the mapping population. These chromosome abnormalities were probably caused by associations between homoeologous chromosomes at meiosis in the resynthesized parent and the F1 plant leading to nondisjunction and homoeologous recombination.