Paternity analysis in a progeny test of Cryptomeria japonica revealed adverse effects of pollen contamination from outside seed orchards on morphological traits

Abstract

To evaluate the effects of pollen contamination from outside of Cryptomeria japonica seed orchard on the growth performance (height and diameter at breast height, DBH) and morphological traits (stem straightness and basal stem straightness), paternity testing using seven microsatellite markers was performed in a progeny test. In the studied progeny test, high rates of inconsistency were found between the observed and expected genotypes. The average rates of pollen contamination from outside the orchard and self-fertilization were 58.47% and 0.65%, respectively. We divided the individuals of the studied progeny test into two groups based on their genotype data, for which: (1) both parents were elite trees and (2) only the mother trees were elite trees, and then compared them with respect to the growth performance and morphological traits of progenies using data at 20 and 30 years old. Significant adverse effects of contaminating pollen were detected in relation to straightness, but not tree height and DBH. The results suggest that the genetic gains for straightness generally show higher narrow-sense heritability than growth traits, which should be increased by reduction of pollen contamination. Breeding with paternal analysis (BWPA) is an effective approach for evaluating breeding materials based on maternal and paternal information revealed by DNA markers. The use of BWPA in progeny test allows effective forward- and backward selection without laborious and time-consuming tasks. In this study, we also suggest that the significant pollen contamination and paternal deviation found in the open-pollinated progeny test are serious impediments for BWPA.