Root Trait Variation in Lentil (Lens culinaris Medikus) Germplasm under Drought Stress.

Swati Priya,N K Prasanna Kumari,Ashok Kumar,Rakesh Pandey,Harsh Kumar Dikshit,Shiv Kumar,Ruchi Bansal,Kuldeep Tripathi,Narender Singh,Gaurav Kumar,Amit Kumar Singh,Jyoti Kumari

doi:10.3390/plants10112410

Abstract

Drought is the most critical environmental factor across the continents affecting food security. Roots are the prime organs for water and nutrient uptake. Fine tuning between water uptake, efficient use and loss determines the genotypic response to water limitations. Targeted breeding for root system architecture needs to be explored to improve water use efficiency in legumes. Hence, the present study was designed to explore root system architecture in lentil germplasm in response to drought. A set of 119 lentil (Lens culinaris Medik.) genotypes was screened in controlled conditions to assess the variability in root traits in relation to drought tolerance at seedling stage. We reported significant variation for different root traits in lentil germplasm. Total root length, surface area, root volume and root diameter were correlated to the survival and growth under drought. Among the studied genotypes, the stress tolerance index varied 0.19–1.0 for survival and 0.09–0.90 for biomass. Based on seedling survival and biomass under control and drought conditions, 11 drought tolerant genotypes were identified, which may be investigated further at a physiological and molecular level for the identification of the genes involved in drought tolerance. Identified lines may also be utilised in a lentil breeding program.

Highlights

The total root length (TRL) reduced under stress by 54.6% among lentil lines compared to controls (Figure 1A)
The root length increased or changed non-significantly in 10.9% of genotypes, while the rest decreased in TRL under a moisture-limited environment
The contribution of root traits becomes more critical in water-limited environments, extracting water from deeper layers

Summary

Introduction

Drought is the most critical environmental factor limiting crop productivity worldwide. It is becoming recurrent and threatening to the global food supply [1,2]. Drought may worsen in the future, affecting two-thirds of the global population [3]. The genetic improvement of crops for drought tolerance is the most sustainable and economical solution ensuring food security in unpredictable climatic conditions

Methods

Results

Conclusion