Search

The intensity of selection, inadvertent pathways of domestication, and the influence of climate change collectively amplify the frequency of detrimental alleles. This phenomenon, in turn, triggers genetic drift, leading to an in-advertent decline in the diversity of plant genetic resources. Genetic variability is of utmost importance for a species' adaptability and overall fitness. Our investigation centres on Triticum germplasm within the agroclimatic conditions of the Suceava Gene Bank, encompassing 2021- 2022 field trials. Comprehensive morphophysiological characterisation was conducted across 200 cultivated varieties, spanning three Triticum species (T. aestivum, T. turgidum and T. monococcum). Initially, the data underwent meticulous processing involving the computation of amplitude of variation, variance (s2), standard deviation (vs), and coefficients of variation (s%) for three pivotal agronomical traits: plant height, spikelets per spike, and total seeds per spike. Furthermore, an extensive cluster analysis was performed, encompassing multiple vital plant descriptors. The findings unveiled a remarkable dispersion of data, with standard deviation, amplitude of variation, and coefficient of variation collectively indicating substantial variability among the cultivated varieties. Within the same population, an intriguing observation emerged; of the 200 genotypes analysed, 83 exhibited immunity to Septoria tritici. Delving deeper into the statistical analysis, we identified two primary clusters within the population. Overall, a significant proportion of this germplasm showcased elevated phenotype scores, rendering them well suited for further exploration as foundational material in pre-breeding initiatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The research carried out at the Gene Bank in Suceava, Northern Romania, aimed to highlight the phenotypic variability of the germplasm of Avena spp. For this purpose, the morpho-productive traits and resistance to diseases, pests and weeds were analysed. Productivity, diseases and pests, days to heading and days to maturity descriptors of 46 Avena spp. genotypes (naked and hulled oat) with different biological statuses (36 local populations, 10 cultivars), were evaluated by testing in intercropping experiments with small grain cereals and grain legumes. The unidirectional ANOVA analysis generated values that allowed the elaboration of a hierarchy of heterogeneity in the hulled local populations, for some of the analysed characters (one thousand seeds weight/genotype, degree of attack by Puccinia coronata and Oulema melanopa and days to maturity) and these were less in naked forms. There was a high competition of Avena species, regarding weeds in small grain cereal variants and potentially beneficial for nitrogen symbiotic fixation by increasing naked and hulled local oat population productivity in intercropping with fava bean. The Euclidean distance classification of the oat genotypes investigated in the dendrogram distinguished the generated groups, indicating the maximum distance in cluster IV. With high heterogeneity of productivity traits, better resistance to disease and pests, and shorter maturity, members of this cluster could be used to develop genetic mixture programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]