High-density genetic mapping and QTL analysis for key horticultural traits in bitter gourd : Insights into plant architecture, fruit development, and wart characteristics

IF 5.7 1区农林科学 Q1 HORTICULTURE

Horticultural Plant Journal Pub Date : 2025-06-26 DOI:10.1016/j.hpj.2025.03.007

Feifan Chen, Jiayu Liu, Hongrong Chen, Yi Yang, Xuzhen Li, Yuehong Ding, Libo Tian, Sang Shang

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Bitter gourd (Momordica charantia L.), a staple crop in subtropical and tropical Asia and Africa, is valued for its nutritional and medicinal properties. Despite its significance, genetic studies on key horticultural traits remain limited. To address this, we generated F1, F2, and F2:3 populations by crossing two inbred lines, HNU004 and HNU025. Whole-genome sequencing of the parents and 178 F2 individuals enabled the construction of a high-density genetic map with 2,605 bin SNP markers across 11 linkage groups. QTL mapping using Composite Interval Mapping (CIM) and Multiple QTL Model (MQM) approaches across three environments identified 22 QTLs influencing plant architecture, fruit size, and wart traits, explaining 6.14–68.12% of phenotypic variance. This included three novel QTLs for average internode length, three for lateral branch number (LBN), and four for fruit-related traits. Five key QTLs were consistently detected: lbn3.1 on chromosome 3 (LBN), mfl5.1 and smfw5.1 on chromosome 5 (mature fruit length and single mature fruit weight), and fwf4.1 and fwf6.1 on chromosomes 4 and 6 respectively governing fruit wart characteristics. These QTLs spanned physical regions ranging from 220 kb to 2.1 Mb. Candidate genes were predicted for major QTLs, including Moc03g28260 (lbn3.1), Moc05g28880 and Moc05g29850 (mfl5.1), and Moc06g04450 and Moc06g04970 (fwf6.1). Epistatic interactions between QTLs for LBN and fruit length suggested complex genetic regulation. Molecular markers for mfl5.1, fwf4.1, and fwf6.1 were validated in an independent F2 population of 213 individuals, which confirmed their phenotypic effects. This study provides a dense and informative set of genetic markers suitable for marker-assisted selection in bitter gourd breeding and establishes a foundation for the cloning of candidate genes, thereby accelerating genetic improvement efforts.

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苦瓜主要园艺性状的高密度遗传定位和QTL分析：对植物结构、果实发育和疣性状的见解

苦瓜（Momordica charantia L.）是亚洲和非洲亚热带和热带地区的主要作物，因其营养和药用价值而受到重视。尽管具有重要意义，但对关键园艺性状的遗传研究仍然有限。为了解决这个问题，我们通过杂交两个自交系HNU004和HNU025产生了F1、F2和F2:3群体。对父母和178个F2个体进行全基因组测序，构建了包含11个连锁组的2605个SNP标记的高密度遗传图谱。利用复合区间作图（CIM）和多QTL模型（MQM）方法在三种环境下进行QTL定位，鉴定出22个影响植株结构、果实大小和疣性状的QTL，解释了6.14-68.12%的表型变异。其中，平均节间长度qtl 3个，侧枝数qtl 3个，果实相关性状qtl 4个。一致检测到5个关键qtl：第3染色体（LBN）上的lbn3.1，第5染色体（成熟果长和单果重）上的mfl5.1和smfw5.1，第4和第6染色体上分别控制果疣性状的fwf4.1和fwf6.1。这些qtl跨越220 kb至2.1 Mb的物理区域。预测主要qtl的候选基因包括Moc03g28260 (lbn3.1)， Moc05g28880和Moc05g29850 (mfl5.1)，以及Moc06g04450和Moc06g04970 （fwf6.1）。LBN和果实长度qtl之间的上位互作表明了复杂的遗传调控。mfl5.1、fwf4.1和fwf6.1的分子标记在213个独立F2群体中得到验证，证实了它们的表型效应。本研究为苦瓜育种的标记辅助选择提供了一套丰富的遗传标记，为候选基因的克隆奠定了基础，从而加快了遗传改良的步伐。

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来源期刊

Horticultural Plant Journal Environmental Science-Ecology

CiteScore

9.60

自引率

14.00%

发文量

293

审稿时长

33 weeks

期刊介绍： Horticultural Plant Journal (HPJ) is an OPEN ACCESS international journal. HPJ publishes research related to all horticultural plants, including fruits, vegetables, ornamental plants, tea plants, and medicinal plants, etc. The journal covers all aspects of horticultural crop sciences, including germplasm resources, genetics and breeding, tillage and cultivation, physiology and biochemistry, ecology, genomics, biotechnology, plant protection, postharvest processing, etc. Article types include Original research papers, Reviews, and Short communications.