Chapters authored
Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms: A Modern Tool to Screen Plants for Desirable Traits
Single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) represent a change in a single nucleotide within the genome. This can alter the phenotype of an individual within the same species if it occurs in a coding region of the gene. The change in nucleotide can produce desirable characteristic in plants and can become an object for selection. New SNPs have been discovered and subsequently converted to molecular markers using various non-gel based and next generation sequencing platforms. Considering that SNP markers are based on target genes, its abundance in the genome, high automation and multiplexability, has made it a marker of choice and an effective tool for screening plant germplasm for desirable traits. This chapter considers SNP as molecular marker, their discovery and different SNP genotyping methods was documented. A few case studies of SNP as allele specific markers and their association with traits of interest was considered. Thus, highlighting their efficacy as useful tool for marker assisted selection and plant germplasms screening.
Part of the book: Plant Breeding