Finger Millet Genotypes Research Articles

Genome-wide association analysis revealed genetic markers linked to grain yield and yield related traits in finger millet grown in acidic soils

Abstract Aim Soil acidity has a major impact on the finger millet yield and productivity as tolerant cultivars that perform well in acidic soils are limited. This study aimed at evaluating major finger millet phenotypic traits under acidic soils followed by identifying associated markers. Method A total of 288 finger millet genotypes were field evaluated for 8 major phenotypic traits including grain yield under acid soil conditions at two independent locations (Bako and Gute) in Ethiopia. In parallel, the same genotypes were subjected to genotyping-by-sequencing to generate single nucleotide polymorphism markers to be used in the association panel. Results Phenotypic data analysis revealed significant phenotypic variation in all the targeted traits among the studied genotypes. Genotypes Ec-100093, Ec-215803, and Ec-203322 were relatively high-yielding, whereas genotypes Ec-229721 and Ec-242110 had the lowest grain yield across the two locations. The broad-sense heritability of the traits ranged from 0.04 for the number of effective tillers (NET) to 0.78 for days to emergence (DE). The marker-trait association analysis revealed 23 SNP markers significantly associated with one or more traits. Among the 23 significant markers, one marker associated with DE, seven with days to heading (DH), four with days to maturity (DM), one with plant height (PH), two with number of fingers, two with ear length (EL), three with the number of effective tillers (NET) and three with grain yield (GY). Conclusions The identified novel markers associated with the targeted traits will potentially be useful for genomics-driven finger millet improvement in acidic soils.

Effects of Genotype By Environment Interaction of Finger Millet Genotypes for Seed and Fodder Yield Based on AMMI and BLUP Model

Effects of Genotype By Environment Interaction of Finger Millet Genotypes for Seed and Fodder Yield Based on AMMI and BLUP Model

Genetic variability, heritability and genetic advance in finger millet (Eleusine coracana L.) genotypes

An investigation was carried out with 101 finger millet genotypes for assessment of genetic variability and heritability in four environments during Kharif 2021. Variation due to genotypes for all the traits under study was found significant suggesting high amount of variability among different genotypes for different traits providing ample scope for selection and further evaluation as well as improvement in the seed yield and its component traits. Grain yield per plant (g) had moderate heritability estimates along with high genetic advance expressed as per cent of mean which implied that the character is controlled by genes having additive nature. High heritability combined with high genetic advance expressed as per cent of mean was noted for the characters viz., main ear head length, finger length, 1000-seed weight, protein content, calcium content, iron content and zinc content. Simple selection for such characters would be rewarding.

Evaluation of Genetic Variability in Different Genotypes of Finger Millet (Eleusine coracan L.) through Path and Multivariate Analysis

The experiment was carried out using a Randomized Block Design (RBD) with three replicates. The trials were entirely composed of fifty-two genotypes for yield and their contributing characters for 13 different characters. For every attribute under study, an analysis of variance showed a highly significant difference. Among the genotypes studied, the evaluated characteristics showed varying degrees of heritability, genetic advancement, and variability. Both the genotypic and phenotypic coefficients of variation (PCV and GCV, respectively) ranged from low to high. The modest GCV and PCV values particular for the percentage of fingers per ear (17.47% and 17.50%), ear weight per plant (g) (13.42% and 16.28%), and 1000 seed weight (g) (11.79% and 14.09%), were observed respectively. Plant height (cm) (81.60%, 28.47) had the greatest wide sense heritability value, with the highest genetic advance, followed by ear weight per plant (g) (67.95%, 20.13). Thus, the findings of this study indicate that these genotypes have diversity in yield and other yield-related features, which should be exploited in subsequent breeding. The correlation and path coefficient analyses for yield and yield characteristics showed that grain yield per plant showed a strong positive relationship both at the genotypic and phenotypic levels, with days to 50% flowering, days to maturity, ear weight per plant, and harvest index. Path analysis exhibited that for genotypic and phenotypic coefficients, harvest index (0.33, 0.46) and ear weight/plant (0.86, 0.39) showed the most positive direct effects. These characteristics might thus be applied as selection criteria to identify finger millet genotypes that show promising results in future breeding. Multivariate approaches such as principal component analysis and cluster analysis are crucial statistical tools for examining genetic diversity in plant breeding programs, as are their significant quantitative features. Based on principal component analysis, the entire variance was provided by six main components, of which PC-1 and PC-2 contributed 21.97% and 18.32%, respectively, to the total variability. Euclidean distance was used to divide the fifty-two genotypes into five groups. The largest number of genotypes (twenty-two) in Cluster I was followed by Cluster III, with 16 genotypes. As a result, genotypes from these clusters may be used as parents for hybridization.

Expression profiling of Nuclear Factor-Y (NF-Y) transcription factors during dehydration and salt stress in finger millet reveals potential candidate genes for multiple stress tolerance.

Expression profiling of NF-Y transcription factors during dehydration and salt stress in finger millet genotypes contrastingly differing in tolerance levels identifies candidate genes for further characterization and functional studies. The Nuclear Factor-Y (NF-Y) transcription factors are known for imparting abiotic stress tolerance in different plant species. However, there is no information on the role of this transcription factor family in naturally drought-tolerant crop finger millet (Eleusine coracana L.). Therefore, interpretation of expression profiles against drought and salinity stress may provide valuable insights into specific and/or overlapping expression patterns of Eleusine coracana Nuclear Factor-Y (EcNF-Y) genes. Given this, we identified 59 NF-Y (18 NF-YA, 23 NF-YB, and 18 NF-YC) encoding genes and designated them EcNF-Y genes. Expression profiling of these genes was performed in two finger millet genotypes, PES400 (dehydration and salt stress tolerant) and VR708 (dehydration and salt stress sensitive), subjected to PEG-induced dehydration and salt (NaCl) stresses at different time intervals (0, 6, and 12h). The qRT-PCR expression analysis reveals that the six EcNF-Y genes namely EcNF-YA1, EcNF-YA5, EcNF-YA16, EcNF-YB6, EcNF-YB10, and EcNF-YC2 might be associated with tolerance to both dehydration and salinity stress in early stress condition (6h), suggesting the involvement of these genes in multiple stress responses in tolerant genotype. In contrast, the transcript abundance of finger millet EcNF-YA5 genes was also observed in the sensitive genotype VR708 under late stress conditions (12h) of both dehydration and salinity stress. Therefore, the EcNF-YA5 gene might be important for adaptation to salinity and dehydration stress in sensitive finger millet genotypes. Therefore, this gene could be considered as a susceptibility determinant, which can be edited to impart tolerance. The phylogenetic analyses revealed that finger millet NF-Y genes share strong evolutionary and functional relationship to NF-Ys governing response to abiotic stresses in rice, sorghum, maize, and wheat. This is the first report of expression profiling of EcNF-Ys genes identified from the finger millet genome and reveals potential candidate for enhancing dehydration and salt tolerance.

Assessment of finger millet (Eleusine coracana) genotypes for higher productivity in central dry zone of Karnataka

Assessment of finger millet (Eleusine coracana) genotypes for higher productivity in central dry zone of Karnataka

Assessment of Genetic Variability, Heritability, Genetic Advance, and Diversity Analysis for Morpho Physiological Traits in Finger Millet [Eleusine coracana (l.) Gaertn.

The study, conducted during the Kharif season of 2022, aimed to evaluate genetic variability, heritability, genetic advance, and diversity for morpho-physiological traits in finger millet (Eleusine coracana (L.) Gaertn.) using 39 genotypes. Significant genetic variation was identified for all studied traits through variance analysis. While moderate to high values of Phenotypic Coefficient of Variation (PCV) and Genotypic Coefficient of Variation (GCV) were observed for most traits, exceptions were noted for days to 50 percent flowering, days to maturity, relative water content in leaves, and chlorophyll stability index. The study revealed high heritability with moderate to high genetic advance as a percent of the mean for most traits, suggesting the prevalence of additive gene effects. However, chlorophyll stability index and relative water content exhibited lower values. D2 analysis indicated the existence of sufficient genetic diversity among the genotypes. The genotypes were categorized into five distinct non-overlapping clusters. Cluster I, the largest cluster with 35 genotypes, displayed maximum intra-cluster distance. Clusters V and III had the highest inter-cluster distances, Days to maturity played a significant role in overall divergence. The findings suggest that a direct selection approach in finger millet landraces could lead to a substantial increase in yield response. This research provides valuable insights into the genetic characteristics of finger millet genotypes, offering a foundation for targeted breeding programs to enhance crop improvement.

Phenotypic and Genetic Variation Studies in Finger Millet Genotypes to Blast Disease Caused by Pyricularia grisea

Phenotypic and Genetic Variation Studies in Finger Millet Genotypes to Blast Disease Caused by Pyricularia grisea

Morpho-physiological Evaluation of Finger Millet (Eleusine coracana L. Gaertn.) Genotypes for Drought Tolerance

Finger millet (Eleusine coracana L. Gaertn.) is a nutritious and climate-resilient crop with a C4 type carbon fixation pathway. The present study was aimed to assess the drought tolerance capacities of twenty short medium-late duration finger millet genotypes under water stress (WS) for 15 days during reproductive stage to identify the traits and genotypes for drought tolerance using statistical analysis. The shoot length (16.74 %), leaf area (28.21 %), shoot dry weight (30.20 %), relative water content (32.70 %), membrane stability index (37.53 %), test weight (14.64 %), grain yield (36.48 %) and straw yield (31.34 %) were decreased and found sensitive to water stress, but the root length (by 13.45 %), root to shoot ratio by length (36.15 %) and proline (146.96 %) were increased. From the present investigation, among the 20 genotypes tested, KMR-204 and GPU-45 in short duration, ML-365, PR-202 and GPU-28 in medium duration, KMR-301 and L-5 in long duration showed identical performance for maximum number of traits under consideration. Hence, our results provide inputs to the breeders to select genotypes as parents and to design effective strategies in crop improvement programs.

Differences in the nutritional quality of improved finger millet genotypes in Ethiopia

Improved crop genotypes are constantly introduced. However, information on their nutritional quality is generally limited. The present study reports the proximate composition and the concentration and relative bioavailability of minerals of improved finger millets of different genotypes. Grains of finger millet genotypes (n = 15) grown in research station during 2019 and 2020 in Ethiopia, and replicated three times in a randomized complete block design, were analysed for proximate composition, mineral concentration (iron, zinc, calcium, selenium), and antinutritional factors (phytate, tannin and oxalate). Moreover, the antinutritional factors to mineral molar ratio method was used to estimate mineral bioavailability. The result shows a significant genotypic variation in protein, fat and fibre level, ranging from 10% to 14.6%, 1.0 to 3.8%, and 1.4 to 4.6%, respectively. Similarly, different finger millets genotypes had significantly different mineral concentrations ranging from 3762 ± 332 to 5893 ± 353 mg kg−1 for Ca, 19.9 ± 1.6 to 26.2 ± 2.7 mg kg−1 for Zn, 36.3 ± 4.6 to 52.9 ± 9.1 mg kg−1 for Fe and 36.6 ± 11 to 60.9 ± 22 µg kg−1 for Se. Phytate (308–360 µg g−1), tannin (0.15–0.51 mg g−1) and oxalate (1.26–4.41 mg g−1) concentrations were also influenced by genotype. Antinutritional factors to minerals molar ratio were also significantly different by genotypes but were below the threshold for low mineral bioavailability. Genotype significantly influenced mineral and antinutritional concentrations of finger millet grains. In addition, all finger millet genotypes possess good mineral bioavailability. Especially, the high Ca concentration in finger millet, compared to in other cereals, could play a vital role to combating Ca deficiency. The result suggests the different finger millet genotypes possess good nutrient content and may contribute to the nutrition security of the local people.

Identification of Resistant and Susceptible Sources against Blast Diseases in Finger Millet [Eleusine coracana L. (Gaertn.)

The study was undertaken to evaluate the 490 finger millet (Eleusine coracana L.) genotypes (released, pre-release and breeding genotypes) including two check varieties viz., Indaf 5 (susceptible) and GPU-28 (resistant) against neck and finger blast disease at Hill Millet Research Station, Waghai, The Dangs, Gujarat during kharif, 2018 to 2022. Among all the 490 genotypes, 148 genotypes have shown resistant reaction under high disease pressure field conditions for neck and finger blast disease. However, 44 germplasm genotypes have shown consistent susceptible reaction during five years tested viz; kharif, 2018 to 2022. The genotypes viz., CFMV 2, GN-8, VL-376, PR-202 and GPU-67, showed the higher immune reaction under natural field condition. The pooled percent disease intensity of neck and finger blast diseases ranged from 2.90 to 72.4 per cent and 3.9 to 84.2 per cent respectively, in all tested genotypes including national and local checks. The resistant check variety GPU-28 exhibited resistant reaction to both neck and finger blast. In susceptible check variety Indaf-5 recorded the pooled diseases intensity of 61.74 % for neck blast and 73.6 % for finger blast. In which 72.4 and 84.2 is the highest percent pooled disease intensity of neck and finger blasts recorded in finger millet entry WN 666 which is the most highly susceptible reaction noted across five years of study in blast susceptible zone of Gujarat.

Characterization and pathogenicity of Pratylenchus vandenbergae stat. nov. (Tylenchina: Pratylenchidae), a highly pathogenic root‐lesion nematode parasitizing crops in Kenya and South Africa

AbstractA highly fecund root‐lesion nematode parasitizing a variety of crops was discovered and found to be widespread in Kenya and South Africa. These populations were molecularly identical to Pratylenchus teres teres and P. teres vandenbergae based on D2‐D3 of 28S rDNA and Hsp90 sequences. However, based on morphological differences with the original description of P. teres and its different geographical distribution, Pratylenchus vandenbergae stat. nov., previously known as subspecies P. teres vandenbergae, is recognized as a separate species. This species is characterized by a slightly offset labial region with three annuli, en face morphology belonging to Group II, lateral field with four incisures with two outer bands areolated as observed under a light microscope and the inner band also partially areolated at the vulva region as observed in scanning electron microscopy view, a robust stylet (14–17 μm) with rounded knobs and subcylindrical tail with annulated tail tip. This important and common species remained largely under the radar, probably due to identifications based only on sequence similarity, including mislabelled Pratylenchus bolivianus sequences in GenBank. Pathogenicity of P. vandenbergae stat. nov. in finger millet roots was confirmed through acid fuchsin staining, and reproduction and pathogenicity tests in maize, soybean, sunflower and tomato plants demonstrated its capacity to affect crop growth. Life cycle comparison with P. penetrans in vitro showed a similar life cycle length but significantly higher fecundity. Finally, significant differences in pathogenicity and reproduction of P. vandenbergae stat. nov. were found both at genotype level (finger millet genotypes OKHALE‐1 & KNE1034) and crop level (maize, soybean, sunflower and tomato plants).

Genetic Diversity Assessment Using D2 Statistics in Finger Millet [Eleusine coracana (L.) Gaertn.

Aim: The current investigation was carried out using total of 101 finger millet genotypes was carried out at two locations in four environments to study diversity.
 Study Design: Randomized Block Design.
 Place and Duration of Study: 6 Months at Hill Millet Research Station and College Farm, Navsari Agricultural University, Navsari.
 Methodology: D2 statistics was used for study of diversity in 101 genotypes.
 Results: The perusal of the data for diversity studies revealed that intra-cluster distance ranged from 59.93 to 96.56. Highest inter-cluster distance was maximum between clusters VI and XI followed by cluster pair VI and VII.
 Conclusions: Based upon high yielding genotypes and large inter-cluster distances, it is advised to attempt crossing of the genotypes from clusters VI and XI as well as VIII and XIII which may produce broad spectrum of favourable genetic variability for yield improvement in finger millet.

Genetic Diversity Analysis for Yield and Yield Attributing Traits in Finger Millet (Eleusine coracana L.)

The present investigation was carried out to assess the genetic variability, heritability, genetic advance, genetic diversity in 37 finger millet genotypes for 15 quantitative traits during Kharif, 2022 at Field Experimentation Centre, Department of Genetics and Plant Breeding, Naini Agricultural Institute, Sam Higginbottom University of Agricxulture Technology and Sciences, Uttar Pradesh in Randomized Block Design with 3 replications. The analysis of variance for mean sum of squares due to genotypes showed significant differences for all the 15 quantitative characters. The genotype, IE-184 followed by IE-195, IE-185, IE-191, IE-199, IE-180 exhibited highest grain Yield per Plant, while IE-111, IE-150, IE-169, IE-170, IE-175, IE-168 genotypes are early in maturity. Whereas, genotypic and phenotypic coefficient of variation were found high for flag leaf length, number of productive tillers, number of fingers per ear, finger length. High heritability and high Genetic advance were recorded in plant height, flag leaf length, ear width, number of fingers per ear, finger width. Clustering by Tocher’s Method has grouped all 37 genotypes into 6 clusters, in which Cluster-I contains more (16) genotypes and Cluster-IV, Cluster-V, Cluster-VI contains less (1) genotypes. According to Mahalanobis Euclidean Distance (not to scale), the maximum Inter-Cluster distance is recorded between Cluster-I and Cluster-VI (10.52) followed by Cluster-II and Cluster-V (10.44), Cluster-II & Cluster-III (9.35), Cluster-II & Cluster-IV (9.21). Plant height followed by grain yield per plant and days to 50% flowering traits contributes the highest percentage towards the overall divergence among the genotypes. Hence the selection of genotypes based on the above-mentioned characters and Inter Cluster Distance will be useful for crop improvement in Finger Millet.

Genetic Variability of Finger Millet (Eleusine coracana (L.) Gaertn) Genotypes on Agro-Morphological Traits

The present study was conducted during kharif 2019 (July–October)at the field of All India Coordinated Small Millets Improvement Project, College of Agriculture, Rewa (M.P.), India. Thirty-two (32) genotypes were evaluated for estimation of genetic variability, heritability and genetic advance for yield and yield contributing traits. The finger millet genotypes were sown in randomized block design with three replications. The results revealed that the values of phenotypic coefficients of variability were greater than genotypic coefficients of variability for all the traits studied. Moderate magnitude of PCV and GCV was recorded for number of tillers followed by flag leaf width, flag leaf length, 1000-grain weight, biological yield plant-1, and grain yield plant-1. The analysis of variance revealed that highly significant differences were recorded among the genotypes for all the studied characters, which indicate the presence of wide range of variability among genotypes and scope of selection for improvement. The high heritability coupled with high genetic advance as percentage of mean was recorded for flag leaf length, biological yield plant-1, grain yield plant-1, flag leaf width and 1000-grain weight. It forces to conclude that these characters are governed by additive gene action and phenotypic selection based on these traits in the segregating generations would likely to be more effective. In addition to the genetic variability, knowledge on heritability and expected genetic advance helps the breeder to employ the suitable breeding strategy.

Morpho-physiological and biochemical variations in finger millet genotypes under induced salinity stress at seedling stage

Morpho-physiological and biochemical variations in finger millet genotypes under induced salinity stress at seedling stage

Biochemical Molecular Characterization of Finger Millet [Eleusine Coracan L. (Gaertn)] Genotypes

Millets are small-seeded cereal grains consumed as food by millions of people throughout the world. It has been perceived as a potential “super cereal” being one of the most nutritious among all major cereals. Biochemical as well as molecular parameters were analyzed of 12 finger millet genotypes.

Genotypic variability of drought-tolerance responses in underutilized indigenous finger millet genotypes

Genotypic variability of drought-tolerance responses in underutilized indigenous finger millet genotypes

Dissecting genotype × environment interaction in advanced varietal lines of finger millet (Eleusine coracana (L.)) evaluated for seed and fodder yield across twenty environments

The identification of superior and stable genotypes in any crop for commercial cultivation in farmers’ fields is constrained majorly by the existence of genotype × environment interaction (GEI). The current study aimed to assess the patterns of GEI governing seed and fodder yield, identify stable and high seed and fodder yielding genotypes, besides deciphering the correlation among the them in finger millet genotypes evaluated across twenty environments (ten locations-two years combination) in India. The results revealed that the variance due to genotype, environment and GEI were highly significant (P < 0.001) for seed and fodder yield. The AMMI8 model was adequate to explain the detected variation of seed and fodder yield attributable to GEI. For obvious reasons, the check GPU 67 exhibited relatively higher mean seed and fodder yield and also showed excellent stability across all the environments based on AMMI- and BLUP-model indices. In this study, the seed and fodder yielding ability of the genotypes VR1101 and WN559 was comparable to the checks and had broad adaptation across the test environments. The most representative and discriminative environments for seed and fodder yield were E1 and E9. Seed and fodder yield revealed highly significant positive correlations indicating the possibility of effective selection for these two traits simultaneously. The identified stable and high seed and fodder yielding genotypes VR1101 and WN559 are not just worthy genetic resources, and can be recommended for commercial cultivation after further yield trials. Consequently, the genotype VR1101 is approved for commercial cultivation across South Indian states.

GGE biplot analysis of finger millet (Eleusine coracana) genotypes under diverse agro-climatic conditions of Uttarakhand

GGE biplot analysis of finger millet (Eleusine coracana) genotypes under diverse agro-climatic conditions of Uttarakhand