Chapters authored
Breeding Mechanisms for High Temperature Tolerance in Crop Plants
Increase in global warming poses a severe threat on agricultural production thereby affecting food security. A drastic reduction in yield at elevated temperature is a resultant of several agro-morphological, physiological and biochemical modifications in plants. Heat tolerance is a complex mechanism under polygenic inheritance. Development of tolerant genotypes suited to heat extremes will be more advantageous to tropical and sub tropical regimes. A clear understanding on heat tolerance mechanism is needed for bringing trait based improvement in a crop species. Heat tolerance is often correlated with undesirable traits which limits the economic yield. In addition, high environmental interactions coupled with poor phenotyping techniques limit the progress of breeding programme. Recent advances in molecular technique led to precise introgression of thermo-tolerant genes into elite genetic background which has been reviewed briefly in this chapter.
Part of the book: Plant Breeding
Speed Breeding: A Propitious Technique for Accelerated Crop Improvement
Development of climate-resilient genotypes with high agronomic value through conventional breeding consumes longer time duration. Speed breeding strategy involves rapid generation advancement that results in faster release of superior varieties. In this approach, the experimental crop is grown in a controlled environment (growth chambers) with manipulation provisions for temperature, photoperiod, light intensity, and moisture. The generation of the crop cycle can be hastened by inducing changes in the physiological process such as photosynthesis rate, flowering initiation, and duration. Speed breeding eases multiple trait improvement in a shorter span by integration of high-throughput phenotyping techniques with genotype platforms. The crop breeding cycle is also shortened by the implementation of selection methods such as single-seed descent, single plant selection, and marker-assisted selection.
Part of the book: Case Studies of Breeding Strategies in Major Plant Species