Abstract
Domestication and the first steps of sunflower breeding date back more than 4000 years. As an interesting crop to humans, sunflower underwent significant changes in the past to finally find its place as one of the most significant oil crops today. Substantial progress has already been made in understanding how sunflower was domesticated. Recent advances in molecular techniques with improved experimental designs contributed to further understanding of the genetic and molecular basis underlying the architectural and phenotypic changes that occurred during domestication and improvements in sunflower breeding. Understanding the domestication process and assessing the current situation concerning available genotypic variations are essential in order for breeders to face future challenges. A review of the tools that are used for exploring the genetic and genome changes associated with sunflower domestication is given in the paper, along with a discussion of their possible implications on classical sunflower breeding techniques and goals.
Highlights
All modern domesticated sunflowers (Helianthus annuus L.) can be traced back to a single center of domestication in the interior mid-latitudes of eastern North America [1]
We give a review of the genetic and genomic studies that are related to the genetic and genome changes associated with sunflower domestication, and discuss their possible implications on classical sunflower breeding techniques and goals
Genetic studies of sunflower domestication revealed that contrary to findings in other plant species, where it was found that the phenotypic differences caused by domestication are due to a smaller number of genes with a strong effect [14,15], in sunflower, there is a larger number of genes involved in domestication, with the majority of genes showing small or moderate phenotypic effect [6,8]
Summary
All modern domesticated sunflowers (Helianthus annuus L.) can be traced back to a single center of domestication in the interior mid-latitudes of eastern North America [1]. Worldwide oil production shows a growing trend, leading to the rise of sunflower production [3]. Substantial progress has already been made in understanding how sunflower was domesticated. Recent advances in molecular techniques with improved experimental designs, including association mapping, genome-wide association studies, and candidate gene approaches, further contributed to our understanding of the genetic architecture of novel sunflower traits and the phenotypic changes in sunflower during domestication. The recently published sunflower genome sequence by Badouin et al [4] will only add to this knowledge. We give a review of the genetic and genomic studies that are related to the genetic and genome changes associated with sunflower domestication, and discuss their possible implications on classical sunflower breeding techniques and goals
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