BIGapp: A User-Friendly Genomic Tool Kit Identified Quantitative Trait Loci for Creeping Rootedness in Alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.)

Résumé fourni par la source

Alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) is a globally vital forage crop valued for its perennial growth and multiple annual harvests. A breeding effort is underway to improve the crop for productivity and persistence against biotic and abiotic stresses using “creeping rootedness”, a trait where plants exhibit horizontal root growth, similar to rhizomes, with increased vegetative ground surface area. In this study, we analyzed a breeding population of 648 alfalfa segregating for creeping rootedness to identify genomic loci associated with this trait and evaluate the feasibility of using genomic prediction to accelerate breeding cycles. Using genome-wide association studies (GWAS), we identified two major QTL on Chromosome 6 associated with this trait. Genomic prediction showed moderate predictive abilities (0.29-0.38) for creeping rootedness. A significant advancement in this study was the development and utilization of the BIGapp, an R Shiny application designed to streamline the processing of genomic data through an intuitive interface. This tool makes integrating genomics into existing breeding programs accessible, regardless of species ploidy or coding background. The identified QTL will be essential in future efforts to develop new alfalfa cultivars with the creeping rootedness trait and accelerate the breeding cycle, with BIGapp playing a pivotal role in these advancements.

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