Peanut Cultivars Research Articles

The Impact of the Sowing Time on Peanuts Yield`s Components in Marginal Sandy Soils in Southern Oltenia, Romania

Marginal sandy soils are frequently characterized by low fertility, low organic matter, moderate to high acidity and low cationic exchange capacity, limiting the options of smallholding farmers for various crops. To investigate the impact of the sowing time on grain yield, yield components, protein and oil content of peanuts cultivated in marginal sandy soils in Southern Oltenia, Romania, a bifactorial experiment in a randomized complete block design with three replications was conducted during 2015-2017 at the Research Development Station for Plant Culture on Sands Dăbuleni. The first factor was sowing time (the 25th April as early sowing and the 5th May as late sowing) and the second factor was peanut cultivar (Dăbuleni, Viorica, Viviana). According to the results of the experiment the sowing time had significant impact on the pods number per plant, the production of pods and the grain oil content. Analyzing the interaction between the sowing time and the cultivar there were significant differences only in the pod number per plant in 2015 and the production of pods in 2016. In all peanut’s genotypes studied, early sowing led to higher yields of pods compared to late sowing, probably due to the shortening of the vegetation period of the crop by late sowing on the 5th May, which led also to less dry matter and lower oil content accumulated in peanut grains. Therefore, the results suggested that early sowing time is the most recommended for peanuts growth and quality yield in sandy marginal areas.

INFLUENCE OF SEED TREATMENTS ON SEED QUALITY, SEED VIABILITY, AND SEEDLING VIGOR OF SOME PEANUT CULTIVARS UNDER SANDY SOIL CONDITIONS

Seed treatment is a valuable approach for enhancing seed viability and seedling establishment of peanut. The present study aimed to assess the effect of different seed treatments on seed viability and seedling vigor of three peanut cultivars

Assessment of Morphological Variation of Peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) in Ghana

Genetic diversity in crops is critical for advanced crop improvement as it provides alternatives for breeders to develop improved cultivars. Traditionally, morphological traits are used to evaluate genetic divergence and classify existing germplasm. Morphological characterization relies on plants possessing different phenotypic traits to identify the individual. Information on the diversity of peanut grown in Ghana is limited. This study was conducted to determine variation in peanut cultivars in Ghana through morphological characterization. Ninety-five accessions of peanut were collected from three sources across five administrative regions of the country that included farmers, open markets, and research institutes. Morphological characterization comprised 31 characters including 11 quantitative and 20 qualitative traits. Seventy-five percent of the accessions belonged to the fastigiata subspecies. The study revealed through cluster analysis that the accessions were only 30% diverse. Principal Component Analysis of the traits showed that yield attributing traits were the main factor that influences dispersion and superior accessions. These traits included seed length, growth habit, pod length, pod width, plant width, and main stem height. This study demonstrates that phenotypic diversity of peanut cultivars in Ghana is limited.

Construction of EMS-Induced Peanut Mutant Libraries and Identification of Pod-Related Traits Mutant Lines

Peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) is an oil and economic crop of vital importance, and peanut pod is the key organ influencing the yield and processing quality. Hence, the Pod-related traits (PRTs) are considered as important agronomic traits in peanut breeding. To broaden the variability of PRTs in current peanut germplasms, three elite peanut cultivars were used to construct Ethyl methane sulfonate (EMS)-induced mutant libraries in this study. The optimal EMS treatment conditions for the three peanut varieties were determined. It was found that the median lethal dose (LD50) of EMS treatment varied greatly among different genotypes. Finally, the EMS-induced peanut mutant libraries were constructed and a total of 124 mutant lines for PRTs were identified and evaluated. Furthermore, “M-8070”, one of the mutant lines for pod constriction, was re-sequenced via high-throughput sequencing technology. The genome-wide variations between “M-8070” and its wild parent “Fuhua 8” (FH 8) were detected. 2994 EMS-induced single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and 1188 insertion-deletions (InDels) between “M-8070” and its wild parent were identified. The predominant SNP mutation type was C/G to T/A transitions, while the predominant InDel mutation type was “1-bp”. We analyzed the distribution of identified mutations and annotated their functions. Most of the mutations (91.68% of the SNPs and 77.69% of the InDels) were located in the intergenic region. 72 SNPs were identified in the exonic region, leading to 27 synonymous, 43 non-synonymous and 2 stop-gain variation for gene structure. 13 Indels were identified in the exonic region, leading to 4 frame-shift, 8 non-frame-shift and 1 stop-gain variations of genes. These mutations may lead to the phenotypic variation of “M-8070”. Our study provided valuable resources for peanut improvement and functional genomic research.

Susceptibility of Historically Dominant Runner-Type Peanut Cultivars of the Southeastern United States to Early and Late Leaf Spot

A greenhouse experiment was conducted to test the hypothesis that cultivar use contributed to historical shifts in disease predominance patterns in the southeastern United States over the past 50 years. Passalora arachidicola, the causal agent of early leaf spot (ELS), and Nothopassalora personata, the causal agent of late leaf spot (LLS), were inoculated separately or together on three historically dominant cultivars, Florunner (1970 to 1996), Georgia Green (1996 to 2008), and Georgia-06G (2008 to present), and on one susceptible cultivar, Georgia Valencia. These results suggest that the transition from Florunner to Georgia Green could have contributed to the historical shift from LLS to ELS predominance observed in the 1990s, with sporulation potential as a possible mechanistic explanation. There was no evidence that Georgia-06G contributed to the resurgence of LLS in recent years. A negative association between ELS and LLS, where LLS is more suppressed in the presence of ELS, demonstrates that the dynamics of the ELS-LLS disease patterns are complex. Understanding factors that contribute to disease predominance will improve predictive abilities and support the development of cultural practices and fungicide programs specific to the pathogen that is expected to dominate.

Friable Calluses of a Brazilian Peanut Cultivar Increased Cytotoxic Activity against K562 Human Leukemia Cells

HIGHLIGHTS Trans-resveratrol was detected in all extracts from in vivo plants. Other compounds displayed UV spectrum compatible with phenolic compounds. Cultivar IAC886 calluses extract showed highest cytotoxic activity by MTT assay. Brazilian peanut cultivars tested varied in composition and cytotoxic activities.

RESPONSE OF HIGH-YIELDING PEANUT CULTIVARS TO VARIOUS SEED TREATMENTS UNDER MARGINAL FERTILITY SANDY SOIL CONDITIONS

Ameliorating peanut production is a requirement to cope with the abrupt climate change and burgeoning population. Seed treatment is vital for enhancing and sustaining peanut production, particularly in semiarid environments. The latest study aimed to evaluate the impact of different seed treatments on the agronomic and quality of three high-yielding peanut cultivars: Giza-6, North Carolina (N.C.), and Aramanch. The applied seed treatments include Rhizobium inoculation, moringa leaf extract, vitavax, and gypsum versus untreated control. The evaluated peanut cultivars significantly varied in their results for agronomic and quality traits. The cultivar Giza-6, followed by Aramanch, proved the best displaying the highest number of seeds per pod, number of pods per plant, 100-seed weight, number of branches per plant, shelling percentage, biological yield, pod yield, seed yield, oil yield, and protein yield. The applied seed treatments substantially enhanced peanut yield traits, oil, and protein content of peanuts with the superiority of Rhizobium inoculation, gypsum, and moringa extract. These treatments effectively reinforced peanut growth, positively reflected in the yield and quality traits. Subsequently, integrating the seed treatments, particularly Rhizobium inoculation, gypsum, and moringa extract, with high-yielding cultivars, such as Giza-6 and Aramanch, confirmed a helpful approach to enhancing and sustaining peanut production in arid environments.

RESPONSE OF PEANUT TO WEED CONTROL MANAGEMENT AND NANO-ZINC FOLIAR APPLICATION IN GROWTH, YIELD, AND QUALITY TRAITS

A field experiment on a local peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) cultivar transpired in the spring season of 2021 at the Al-Hussainiya region, Holy Kerbala, Iraq (Latitude: 32.6160; Longitude: 44.0249). The completed study aimed to determine peanut response to weed control, foliar application of nano-zinc, and their interaction in growth, yield, and quality traits. The experiment laid out in a split-plot design with two factors (weed control and nano-zinc foliar application) had three replications. The nano-zinc concentrations (0, 50, and 100 mg L-1) occupied the main plots, with the weed control treatments kept in sub-plots. Weed control included the control (T0 – no weed control), manual hoeing (T1), and weed control with pre-emergence (pre-em) herbicides, i.e., Trifluralin (T2) and Pendimethalin (T3), and post-emergence (post-em) herbicides, viz., Oxyfluorfen (T4) and Clethodim (T5). The results showed that post-em herbicide Oxyfluorfen gave superior enhancement on the vegetative dry weight, pods per plant, seeds per plant, total pod yield, protein, and zinc in the seeds with increased values of 52.0%, 265.1%, 254.5%, 211.9%, 13.2%, and 25.5%, respectively, compared with the control treatment. Nano-zinc (100 mg L-1) foliar application led to a significant increase in the above traits with increased rates of 2.5%, 21.2%, 40.6%, 7.4%, 8.2%, and 89.2%, respectively, compared with the control. The interaction between both factors showed significant superiority compared with no weeding and separate application of weed control combined with chemical herbicides and nano-zinc application. The interaction between the post-em weed management (Oxyfluorfen) and nano-zinc (100 mg L-1) application showed highly superior compared with other treatments in the studied traits.

Effect of weed management practices and foliar application of α-Tocopherol on the productivity and oil characteristics of an Egyptian peanut cultivar

Effect of weed management practices and foliar application of α-Tocopherol on the productivity and oil characteristics of an Egyptian peanut cultivar

EFFECT OF PLANT DENSITY ON YIELD AND QUALITY OF PEANUT (Arachis hypogaea L.) CULTIVARS

Plant density can have a major impact on peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) yield. Information is limited in the Eastern Mediterranean Transition Region of Turkiye on growth, development, and yield of peanut cultivars based on plant density. To address this limitation, the cultivars Aysehanim, Rigel, Halisbey, Masal, and NC 7 were established in a single row planting pattern consisting of rows spaced 70 cm apart with an inter-row plant distance of 15 cm (95.000 plants ha-1) versus a twin row planting pattern consisting of rows spaced 20 cm apart on 90 cm centers with an intra-row distance of 15 cm (148.000 plants ha-1). The interaction of cultivar × plant density was significant for most variables. Irrespective of cultivar, establishing a plant population of 148.000 plants ha-1 in the twin row planting pattern resulted in greater pod yield than the single row planting pattern with a plant density of 95.000 plants ha-1. Pod yield was similar for Rigel, Masal, and NC 7 in the twin row planting pattern and exceeded that of Aysehanim and Halisbey. Conversely, yield of Rigel and Halisbey was similar in the single row pattern and exceeded yield of Aysehanim and NC 7.

Antioxidant expression in peanut (Arachis hypogaea L. cv. CNC1) under drought condition

The current study was carried out to assess the antioxidant expression of the seed’s black-testa peanut cultivar namely CNC1 in the artifical drought condition. The oxidative stress with a burst of O2 .- and H2O2 in peanut leaves resulted the obviously cellular membrane damage that was illustrated by an increase of lipid peroxidation. A high induced activity of enzymatic antioxidants such as SOD, CAT and POX would detoxify the excess of O2 .- and H2O2. An increase in content of amino acid proline protects the stressed cells by adjusting intercellular osmotic potential. The antioxidative expression of CNC1 plants was similar to that in L20 cutivar - a drought tolerant cutivar of peanut.

Upper central exponent of linear stochastic differential algebraic equations of index 1

The current study was carried out to assess the antioxidant expression of the seed’s black-testa peanut cultivar namely CNC1 in the artifical drought condition. The oxidative stress with a burst of O2 .- and H2O2 in peanut leaves resulted the obviously cellular membrane damage that was illustrated by an increase of lipid peroxidation. A high induced activity of enzymatic antioxidants such as SOD, CAT and POX would detoxify the excess of O2 .- and H2O2. An increase in content of amino acid proline protects the stressed cells by adjusting intercellular osmotic potential. The antioxidative expression of CNC1 plants was similar to that in L20 cutivar - a drought tolerant cutivar of peanut.

Multilocation Evaluation of Virginia and Runner -Type Peanut Cultivars for Yield and Grade in Virginia–Carolina Region

The peanut is mostly grown in semi-arid tropical regions of the world, characterized by unpredictable rainfall amounts and distribution. Average annual precipitation in the Virginia–Carolina (VC) region is around 1300 mm; however, unpredictable distribution can result in significant periods of water deficit and subsequent reduction in yield and gross income. The development of new peanut cultivars with high yield and acceptable levels of yield stability across various water-availability scenarios is an important component of the peanut breeding program in Virginia and the Carolinas, where the large-seeded Virginia-type peanut is the predominantly grown market type. In addition, the simultaneous use of runner cultivars developed in the dryer southeastern region has been proposed as a practical solution to limited irrigation availability in the VC region. Still, the identification and adequate utilization of available commercial cultivars with the best combination of yield, drought tolerance, and gross income is more immediately beneficial to the peanut industry, yet this assessment has not been carried out to date. The aim of this study was to identify cultivars that maintain high yield and grade, therefore gross income, across a wide range of environmental conditions. We evaluated five commercially available Virginia and runner-type peanut cultivars for pod yield stability using multilocation trials over four years across 13 environments. Additive main effects and multiplicative interaction (AMMI) and different stability approaches were used to study genotype (G), environment (E), and their interaction (G × E) on pod yield. Pod yield stability was specifically assessed by using the Lin and Binn approach, Wricke’s ecovalence, Shukla’s stability, and the Finlay–Wilkinson approach. The combined analysis of variance showed highly significant effects (p ≤ 0.001) for genotypes, environments, and G × E for pod yield. The environments varied in yield (2840–8020 kg/ha). Bailey, Sullivan, and Wynne are Virginia-type cultivars. The grade factors SMK, SS, and TK changed with water regime within both market types. Among the runner cultivars, TUFRunner 297 presented high mean productivity; however, it showed specific adaptation to limited environmental conditions. Based on different stability approaches, this study concludes that Sullivan and Bailey are the most stable and adaptable cultivars across the testing environments, whereas Wynne exhibited specific adaptability to some environments. These findings have important implications for peanut cultivar recommendations in terms of meeting peanut industry standards for yield, grading quality, and breeding progress.

Metabolomics combined with transcriptomics analyses of mechanism regulating testa pigmentation in peanut.

Peanut testa (seed coat) contains large amounts of flavonoids that significantly influence seed color, taste, and nutritional qualities. There are various colors of peanut testa, however, their precise flavonoid components and regulatory mechanism of pigmentation remain unclear. In this study, a total of 133 flavonoids were identified and absolutely quantified in the seed coat of four peanut cultivars with different testa color using a widely targeted metabolomic approach. Black peanut skin had more types and substantial higher levels of cyanidin-based anthocyanins, which possibly contribute to its testa coloration. Procyanidins and flavan-3-ols were the major co-pigmented flavonoids in the red, spot and black peanuts, while flavanols were the most abundant constitutes in white cultivar. Although the concentrations as well as composition characteristics varied, the content ratios of procyanidins to flavan-3-ols were similar in all samples except for white peanut. Furthermore, MYB-like transcription factors, anthocyanidin reductases (ANR), and UDP-glycosyltransferases (UGT) were found to be candidate genes involved in testa pigmentation via RNA-seq and weighted gene co-expression network analysis. It is proposed that UGTs and ANR compete for the substrate cyanidin and the prevalence of UGTs activities over ANR one will determine the color pattern of peanut testa. Our results provide a comprehensive report examining the absolute abundance of flavonoid profiles in peanut seed coat, and the finding are expected to be useful for further understanding of regulation mechanisms of seed coat pigmentation in peanut and other crops.

Genetic Similarity from Collections of Seed for Two Peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) Cultivars in Ghana

Maintenance of genetic purity of crop cultivars is critical to meet the needs of farmers, processors, and consumers. In Ghana where the informal seed sector is popular (e. g., farmer-saved seed), purity of improved cultivars in the farming community can be compromised. The objective of the study was to assess the genetic purity of farmer-saved seed of two peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) cultivars (Shitaochi and Yenyawoso) using molecular marker techniques. Twenty samples of Shitaochi and eight samples of Yenyawoso were collected from farmers across five regions of the country and were compared with seed provided by the research institutes of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR). Genetic similarity ranged from 43% to 100% when comparing seed collections from farmers to those from research institutes. Only five of the 20 seed samples of Shitaochi (25%) and two of the 8 samples of Yenyawoso (25%) collected from farmers were found to be completely similar to the reference samples provided by CSIR. These results demonstrate the lack of purity among described cultivars in the informal seed sector in Ghana. While diversity between samples of Shitaochi have been reported and would be expected in the informal seed system, the pace at which Yenyawoso has lost genetic purity in a relatively short period of time indicates that a more effective formal seed system is needed to maintain cultivar purity.

Diversity of Ultraviolet Reflection Pattern in Arachis Flowers

Over a third of global agriculture is dependent on insect pollination, especially by bees. Yields of insect-pollinated crops are often managed by the addition of honeybees (Apis mellifera) to increase pollination, yet wild bee species (Bombus spp.) also increase pollination and fruit set for many globally important crops. Plant biodiversity within and surrounding crop fields can attract wild bee species and increase pollination in those fields. Peanut is an important global food crop known to attract honeybee and wild bee pollinators despite being self-pollinating and not reliant on bee pollination for seed set. Some wild Arachis species derived breeding materials have been documented to have early flowering, high flowering throughout the growing season, and large flowers as compared to cultivated peanut, which can increase attractiveness to bees. However, the presence and diversity of UV floral guides, color and UV absorbance and reflectance flower patterns that aid in flower detection and orientation towards nectar and/or pollen, have not been studied in Arachis. This study documents the presence and diversity of UV floral guides in two A. hypogaea genotypes, two peanut breeding lines, eight wild Arachis species, 19 unique allotetraploids, and four BC1F3 lines. All Arachis genotypes studied had UV floral guides and genotype was a significant indicator of flower size and UV floral guide size. Further studies evaluating the nutritional quality and abundance of pollen in Arachis species are needed to better understand the impact of ornamental Arachis species and peanut cultivars on wild bee abundance and diversity in urban landscapes and in agricultural fields, respectively.

Visualizing the Distribution of Lipids in Peanut Seeds by MALDI Mass Spectrometric Imaging.

Peanut (also called groundnut, Arachis hypogaea L.) seeds are used for producing edible oils and functional foods, and offer a rich source of lipids, proteins and carbohydrates. However, the location of these metabolites has not yet been firmly established. In the present study, the matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometric imaging (MALDI-MSI) technique was applied to investigate spatial distribution of lipids and other key components in seeds of three peanut cultivars (ZH9, KQBH, HP). A total of 103 metabolites, including 34 lipid compounds, were putatively identified by MALDI-MSI. The abundance and spatial distribution of glycerolipids (GLs) and glycerophospholipids (GPs) were compared among the three peanut cultivars. All the identified lysophosphatidylcholine (LPC), phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) and phosphatidylcholines (PCs) were distributed mainly in the inner part of seeds. The visualization of phosphatidic acids (PAs) and triacylglycerols (TGs) revealed a dramatic metabolic heterogeneity between the different tissues making up the seed. The non-homogeneous spatial distribution of metabolites appeared to be related to the different functions of particular tissue regions. These results indicated that MALDI-MSI could be useful for investigating the lipids of foodstuffs from a spatial perspective. The present study may contribute to the development of oil crops with higher oil yields, and to improvement of food processing.

Registration of ‘Georgia‐SP/RKN’ peanut

Abstract‘Georgia‐SP/RKN’ (Reg. no. CV‐151, PI 700991), is a high‐yielding, large‐seeded spanish market type peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) cultivar with high total sound mature kernel percentage, high oleic to linoleic fatty acid ratio, high level of resistance to Tomato spotted wilt virus (Family Tospoviridae, genus Orthotospovirus), and full resistance to root‐knot nematode [Meloidogyne arenaria (Neal)]. Georgia‐SP/RKN was released in 2021 by the Georgia Agricultural Experiment Station and was developed and tested as GA 082549R‐2 at the University of Georgia's Coastal Plains Experiment Station at the Tifton Campus, Tifton, GA. Georgia‐SP/RKN exhibits pod yields similar to ‘Georgia‐04S’ and ‘Georgia‐17SP’, and pod yields are consistently higher than other commercially available spanish cultivars in the southeastern United States. High grade quality and the added benefit of root‐knot nematode resistance could make this high‐oleic spanish market‐type cultivar a good fit for the confectionary market.

Identification and functional characterization of the xyloglucan endotransglucosylase/hydrolase 32 (AhXTH32) in peanut during aluminum-induced programmed cell death

The toxicity of aluminum (Al) in acidic soil is a prevalent problem and causes reduced crop yields. In the plant response to Al toxicity, programmed cell death (PCD) appears to be an important mechanism. The plant cell wall of crop roots is the predominant site targeted by Al. Here, studies of the capacities of different cell wall constituents (pectin, hemicellulose 1 {HC1} and HC2) to adsorb Al indicated that HC1 has the greater ability to bind Al. The activity of xyloglucan endotransglucosylase (XET) was significantly inhibited by Al in the Al-tolerant peanut cultivar ‘99–1507’ compared to that in ‘ZH 2’ (Al-sensitive). Results from qPCR analysis suggested that the suppression of XET activity by Al was transcriptionally regulated and that xyloglucan endotransglucosylase/hydrolase 32 (AhXTH32) was the major contributor to these changes. The overexpression of AhXTH32 in Arabidopsis strongly inhibited root growth with a loss of viability in root cells and the occurrence of typical hallmarks of PCD, while largely opposite effects were observed after xth32 suppression. AhXTH32 contributed to the modulation XET and xyloglucan endohydrolase (XEH) activity in vivo. Taken together, our results demonstrate that Al-tolerant peanut cultivar root tips cell walls bind Al predominantly in the HC1 fraction, which results in the inhibition of AhXTH32, with consequences to root growth, Al sensitivity, the occurrence of PCD and the XET/XEH activity ratio.

Influence of Peanut Varieties on the Sensory Quality of Peanut Butter.

Over the years, concentrated efforts have been directed toward the improvement of desirable characteristics and attributes in peanut cultivars. Most of these breed improvement programs have been targeting attributes that involve peanut growth, productivity, drought and disease tolerance, and oil quality and content, with only a few articles focusing directly on improvements in peanut butter organoleptic qualities. There are numerous peanut cultivars on the market today, with widely differing chemical compositions and metabolite profiles, about which little is known concerning their suitability for making peanut butter. In this review, we detail how the numerous peanut varieties on the market today, with their genetically conferred physiochemical attributes, can significantly affect the sensory quality attributes of peanut butter, even in peanut butter processing lines with optimized processes. If other peanut butter processing parameters are held constant, variations in the chemical composition and metabolite profiles of peanuts have a significant impact on peanut butter color, flavor, texture, storage stability, shelf life, and overall product acceptance by consumers. Further research on breeding programs for peanut varieties that are specifically tailored for peanut butter production, and even more comprehensive research on the synergetic relationship between peanut chemical composition and peanut butter organoleptic quality, are still required.