Identification of candidate genes for easily-shelled traits in Tartary buckwheat based on BSA-Seq and RNA-Seq methods.

The hard-shelled character of ordinary cultivated Tartary buckwheat has become a factor influencing its taste and nutritional efficacy. However, the local variety, Rice-Tartary, can dehull easily. The genetic mechanism regulating easily-shelled Fagopyrum tataricum is unknown. In this study, the F2 generation segregating population was constructed by crossing Yunqiao No.1 (hard-shelled) and Rice-Tartary (easily-shelled) as parents, and the bulked segregant analysis sequencing (BSA-seq) strategy was used to initial mapping. The gene locus controlling the easily-shelled trait of Tartary buckwheat was preliminarily located in the 4.07 Mb region of the first chromosome. To further narrow the range, the Kompetitive allele-specific PCR primers based on the single nucleotide polymorphisms in the initial location range were designed and tested in 335 individual plants in the hybrid F2 population. The candidate gene Ftes1 was located between Ft6,705,225 and Ft7,041,921, according to the genetic linkage map constructed based on typing data. Combined with the location of candidate genes, the RNA-Seq data, and qRT-PCR results, the results indicate that 3 genes, FtPinG0001427400.01, FtPinG0001428600.01, and FtPinG0002492200.01 may regulate the easily-shelled Tartary buckwheat. The results of this study provide vital candidate genes for the cloning and functional analysis of genes related to easily-shelled traits, as well as prominent molecular markers for breeding of new varieties of Tartary buckwheat. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]