2012 Annual Report 1a.Objectives (from AD-416): (1) Identify and functionally characterize genes central to the adaptation of plant to water-deficit and thermal stresses. (2) Discover and/or develop germplasm enhanced for stress resistance traits. (3) Identify and characterize water-deficit and thermal stress-responding promoters for using the controlled expression of stress resistance genes and for testing of a user-friendly plant stress reporter system for crop management. 1b.Approach (from AD-416): A multidisciplinary research approach will be utilized because of the complexity of the problems to be addressed. Genes will be identified via expression databases and mutational analyses. Physiological and molecular characterizations will be used to identify germplasm with enhanced stress tolerances. Transformational technologies will be used in the development of plant with enhanced stress tolerances and plant with stress responsive reporter genes. 3.Progress Report: For FY2011-2012, the multilocation trial of the F7 recombinant inbred population BTx623xPI567946 for early season cold tolerance in Texas, Kansas, and South Dakota was completed. The top 20 cold-tolerant lines were selected from this RI population to combine enhanced early season field emergence, robust vigor, with desirable plant height, and non-tannin trait for development of cold-tolerant germplasm for use in breeding programs. A significant increase in germplasm resources screened for early season cold tolerance under controlled conditions and identification new non-tannin sources of cold tolerance from Ethiopian highlands and of cold vigor mutants within the BTx623 genetic background (cvg from the AIMs mutant population) were achieved in the reporting period. Genotyping of BTx623x PI567946 to produce a higher density genetic map is completed for further analysis of QTL markers for early season cold tolerance. Progress in understanding the relationship between early season cold tolerance and tannins through QTL mapping and cloning of tannin genes in sorghum was achieved. The accomplishments provided here relate to the completion of majority of the objectives (1, 2, 3, and. 4)of the project.