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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Griffin, Georgia » Plant Genetic Resources Conservation Unit » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #247550
Title: Assessment of Genetic Diversity and Population Structure of Sweet Sorghum Accessions in the U.S. Germplasm Collection

Author
item Wang, Ming
item ZHU, CHENGSONG - Kansas State University
item Anglin, Noelle
item CHEN, ZHENBANG - University Of Georgia
item Erpelding, John
item Pederson, Gary
item YU, JIANMING - Kansas State University

Submitted to: Plant and Animal Genome Conference
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 11/2/2009
Publication Date: 1/9/2010
Citation: Wang, M.L., Zhu, C., Barkley, N.L., Chen, Z., Erpelding, J.E., Pederson, G.A., Yu, J. 2010. Assessment of Genetic Diversity and Population Structure of Sweet Sorghum Accessions in the U.S. Germplasm Collection. Plant and Animal Genome Conference.

Interpretive Summary: Sweet sorghum can potentially become a versatile feedstock for large-scale bioenergy production because sugars from the stems, cellulose/hemicellulose from the stalks, and starch from the grain all can be used to produce bioethanol. The U.S. sweet sorghum germplasm collection is maintained in the USDA-ARS-PGRCU, Griffin, Georgia. The genetic structure and diversity of this U.S. historic sweet sorghum collection have not been well evaluated. To assess the genetic diversity and population structure of this collection, we first selected 96 accessions and genotyped them with 95 simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers. Genetic diversity and population structure analysis indicates (1) there were four subpopulations in the assayed accessions, which correlated well with the geographic locations where these accessions originated or were collected and (2) this collection is suitable for association analysis. Our results suggest that diverse germplasm accessions curated from different geographical regions should be considered for plant breeding programs to develop sweet sorghum cultivars or hybrids. More accessions from this collection have been selected, are being genotyped with more DNA markers in the lab and evaluated for the traits relevant to biomass and sugar production in the field. The collected genetic, biochemical and morphological data on this collection will be exploited for association analysis.

Technical Abstract: Sweet sorghum can potentially become a versatile feedstock for large-scale bioenergy production. Approximately 3,000 accessions are maintained in the U.S. sweet sorghum germplasm at the USDA-ARS-PGRCU, Griffin, Georgia. To assess the genetic diversity and population structure of this collection, we first selected 96 accessions and genotyped them with 95 simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers. Genetic diversity and population structure analysis indicated (1) there were four subpopulations in the assayed accessions, which correlated well with the geographic locations where these accessions originated or were collected and (2) this collection is suitable for association analysis. Additional accessions from this collection have been selected for genotyping and for evaluation of traits relevant to biomass and sugar production. The collected genetic, biochemical and morphological data on this collection will be exploited for association analysis.