Combining ability patterns among West African pearl millet landraces and prospects for pearl millet hybrid breeding

Pucher, A and Sy, O and Sanogo, M D and Angarawai, I I and Zangre, R and Ouedraogo, Mahamadi and Boureima, S and Hash, C T and Haussmann, B I G (2016) Combining ability patterns among West African pearl millet landraces and prospects for pearl millet hybrid breeding. Field Crops Research, 195. pp. 9-20. ISSN 03784290

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Abstract

Pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum (L.) R. Br.) is an important hybrid crop in India. However, to date limited pearl millet hybrid development has been undertaken in West Africa (WA), which is the center of pearl millet origin and diversity and where this crop is most important outside India. Using a diverse set of WA pearl millet germplasm, objectives of this study were to determine the superiority of population hybrids over open-pollinated varieties for agro-morphological and agronomic traits in WA pearl millet germplasm; and (ii) to derive strategies for pearl millet hybrid breeding in WA, based on quantitative-genetic parameters, combining ability and heterotic patterns among geographically close versus distant pearl millet populations. A 10 × 10 factorial mating design was performed with four parental OPVs from each of five WA countries. The 100 population hybrids and their parents were tested for 14 traits at six locations in one year, thereby using contrasting locations to indirectly sample the rainfall variability inherent to WA pearl millet production environments. Grain yield showed an average panmictic midparent heterosis (PMpH) of 16.7%, ranging from −26 to 73%. The mean grain yield of hybrids based on inter-country crosses did not differ significantly from intra-country crosses. Geographic distance between parents was positively correlated with hybrid grain yield (r = 0.31), but not with PMpH . Some crosses between accessions from Niger/Nigeria and Senegal were outstanding. Predictability of population hybrid performance for grain yield was moderate based on midparent values (r = 0.43) and slightly better based on general combining ability (GCA) (r = 0.56). Overall, pearl millet hybrid breeding in WA seems very promising, but there do not seem to be clear “natural” heterotic groups among WA pearl millet landraces. Such heterotic groups as the basis of sustainable hybrid breeding need rather to be created systematically, by building on existing combining ability patterns and aiming to maximize combining ability between the groups.

Item Type:	Article
Divisions:	Research Program : West & Central Africa
CRP:	CGIAR Research Program on Dryland Cereals
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Population hybrids; Pearl millet; Heterotic pattern; Panmictic midparent heterosis
Subjects:	Others > Plant Breeding Mandate crops > Millets Mandate crops > Millets > Pearl Millet Others > West Africa
Depositing User:	Mr Ramesh K
Date Deposited:	11 Nov 2016 04:41
Last Modified:	18 Oct 2017 09:18
URI:	http://oar.icrisat.org/id/eprint/9774
Official URL:	http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.fcr.2016.04.035
Projects:	UNSPECIFIED
Funders:	UNSPECIFIED
Acknowledgement:	The authors are grateful to the German Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) for financial support to the field research presented here (GIZ project numbers 05.7860.9-001.00 and 13.1432.7-001.00); and to the McKnight FoundationCollaborative Crop Research Program for the discretionary researchfunds provided to B.I.G. Haussmann, used to support A. Pucher. This publication was finalized as part of the CGIAR Research Program on Dryland Cereals.
Links:	Google Scholar

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