Research

Life Sciences & Biotechnology

Title :

Uncovering of superior alleles and haplotypes through targeted resequencing of genes governing key traits suitable for direct-seeded rice (Oryza sativa L.)

Area of research :

Life Sciences & Biotechnology

Principal Investigator :

Dr. Lakshminarayana Reddy Vemireddy, sri Venkateswara Agricultural College, A.N.G.R. Agricultural University, Guntur, Andhra Pradesh

Timeline Start Year :

2024

Timeline End Year :

2027

Contact info :

Details

Executive Summary :

The direct-seeded rice (DsR) is an excellent and established water and labour-saving technology gaining popularity in rice-growing areas of India and the world. The varieties bred for irrigated ecosystems are found to exhibit as much as 30% yield reduction when grown under DsR conditions where the seed is directly sown either on dry or wet soils. Additionally, it has been also found that DsR has a few limitations such as heavy weed competitiveness, lodging susceptibility due to shallow root system and poor germination under water logged conditions. The genetics of the must-have traits for DsR such as early seedling vigour, anaerobic germination, lodging resistance, etc., has recently begun to understand with the incredible advances in sequencing technology and gene mapping methods. several genomic regions or quantitative trait loci (QTL) have been identified and some of the candidate genes have also been uncovered for DsR traits. However, the allelic status of the cloned genes for DsR-traits has been unknown in the Indian rice germplasm, which contributed phenomenally to world rice breeding. In the present proposal, we aimed to identify superior alleles and haplotypes for the important genes controlling DsR-traits using targeted resequencing of 150 diverse Indian rice genotypes for the five cloned genes such as OsPK5/qsG11.1 (pyruvate kinase) for seed germination, OsHIPL1/qsV3 (hedgehog-interacting protein-like 1 protein) for seed vigor and qsOR1 (homolog of DRO1 (DEEPER ROOTING 1) for shallower root growth angle, OsTPP7/AG1(trehalose-6-phosphate phosphatase) for anaerobic germination and sCM3 (TCP family transcription factor) for lodging resistance. The novel alleles and superior haplotypes from the Indian rice germplasm are expected to have potential implications to develop DsR-friendly varieties besides expanding our understanding of the genetics of the targeted traits suitable to DsR conditions.

Co-PI:

Dr. Yellari Amaravathi, sri Venkateswara Agricultural College, A.N.G.R. Agricultural University, Guntur, Andhra Pradesh-517502

Total Budget (INR):

23,98,000

Organizations involved