Location: Plant Genetics Research
Project Number: 5070-21000-044-006-R
Project Type: Reimbursable Cooperative Agreement
Start Date: Oct 1, 2022
End Date: Nov 30, 2023
Objective:
Identify and release soybean germplasm with improved drought tolerance.
Approach:
Our previous research with USDA-GRIN lines with favorable drought associated traits crossed to elite public parental line resulted in creation of multiple breeding populations containing the best possible alleles for multiple drought-associated traits. We also intercrossed among our populations to generate Multi-parent Advanced Generation InterCross (MAGIC) populations specific for drought traits. We intend to identify and release soybean germplasm which will serve to broaden the genetic base and deploy drought alleles in improved soybean genotypes.
We have four activities that will be used to meet the objective:
1) Multi-location testing for yield/drought tolerance using G1F4:5 derived materials, created by repeated agronomic and genomic selection experiments.
2) Ongoing agronomic/genomic selection of MAGIC G4F4 populations towards future germplasm releases.
3) Genotype a single MAGIC G4F4:5 population, which combines multiple drought tolerance traits, for use in genetic mapping efforts.
4) Evaluate the potential utility and predictive ability of seed isotopic data in comparison to whole plant isotopic data, as an indirect measurement of water use efficiency and/or drought tolerance potential.
MWA-ARS location in Missouri personnel will have primary responsibility for overall project coordination and reports, for collecting and processing all genomic/genotypic data and for coordinating winter nursery advancement of all prospective germplasm. MWA-ARS personnel in Missouri will also be primarily responsible for overseeing data analysis. Physiological and yield data will be collected by project partners with the required physiological/breeding expertise at remote field locations (Arkansas, Missouri, Arizona). MWA-ARS location in Missouri does not have the requisite equipment or expertise, nor can they handle all the required field locations, needs which are suitably supplied by personnel affiliated with the University of Arkansas, University of Missouri and ARS location in Maricopa.
PWA-ARS location in Maricopa’s role is limited; they are responsible for performing a single field grow-out, using seed provided by the MWA ARS location, of prospective germplasm releases. Maricopa ARS personnel will collect field data (agronomic, thermal camera, canopy wilting scores, etc.) and harvest and organize seed samples to be sent to ARS location in Missouri.
Project partners will substantially share data collected and germplasm generated by this project. MWA-ARS personnel, University of Missouri and University of Arkansas partners, carried out crossing efforts collaboratively and collectively in previous years of the project. All germplasm used was derived from either public germplasm (USDA-GRIN) or from USDA germplasm which was provided via MTAs to non-ARS partners. This was documented in four previously approved extramural funding requests (2021 RCA:58-5070-2-002; 2020 RCA:58-5070-1-004; 2019 RCA: 58-5070-0-004; 2018 RCA: 58-5070-9-001).
