Development and Cross-genera Transferability of Ginger EST-SSR Markers for Cardamom

Background: Cardamom (Elettaria cardamomum Maton) is an important commodity spice that comes under the ginger family (Zingiberaceae). Several genetic markers are widely being used to analyze plant genomes. However, genetic mapping of cardamom has never been attempted owing to the lack of sufficient number of high quality genetic markers and other pertinent genome information.

Objective: The goals of the present study were to design SSR markers from the EST sequences of ginger (Zingiber officinale) and to validate the same in cardamom for demonstrating cross generic transferability. Method: 38,116 expressed sequence tags of ginger downloaded from the NCBI dbEST database were used to develop and validate co-dominant, multi-allelic SSR markers.

Results: A total of 1214 SSRs including mono, di, tri, tetra and hexa repeats were identified in the study. The validation through SSR-PCR followed by agarose gel electrophoresis was carried out for the developed markers. Genetic analysis of the SSR markers showed polymorphism and it clearly differentiated wild genotypes from cultivars and wild escapes from the plantations. Large cardamom, Amomum subulatum Roxb. was used as an outgroup and the newly developed EST-SSR markers were amplified well in this species.

Conclusion: The newly developed EST-SSRs could be useful as reproducible markers for cardamom genetic studies.

See https://benthamscience.com/journals/current-bioinformatics/article/147712/

Genoproteomics-assisted improvement of Andrographis paniculata: toward a promising molecular and conventional breeding platform for autogamous plants affecting the pharmaceutical industry

Andrographis paniculata (Burm. f.) Wall. ex Nees. (AP) is a hermaphroditic, self-compatible, and habitual inbreeding plant. Its main bioactive component is andrographolide, which is capable of inducing autophagic cell death in some human cancer cells and helps fight HIV/AIDS. Increasing the andrographolide content by investigating the genetic mechanisms controlling its biosynthesis in order to improve and develop high-yielding cultivars are the main breeding targets for AP. However, there might exist some limitations or barriers for crossability within AP accessions. Recently, this problem was addressed in AP by using a combination of crossbreeding and biotechnology-aided genetic methods. This review emphasizes that development of a breeding platform in a hard-to-breed plant, such as AP, requires the involvement of a broad range of methods from classical genetics to molecular breeding. To this end, a phenological stage (for example, flowering and stigma development) can be simplified to a quantitative morphological trait (for example, bud or stigma length) to be used as an index to express the highest level of receptivity in order to manage outcrossing. The outcomes of the basic crossability research can be then employed in diallel mating and crossbreeding. This review explains how genomic data could produce useful information regarding genetic distance and its influence on the crossability of AP accessions. Our review indicates that co-dominant DNA markers, such as microsatellites, are also capable of resolving the evolutionary pathway and cryptic features of plant populations and such information can be used to select the best breeding strategy. This review also highlights the importance of proteomic analysis as a breeding tool. In this regard, protein diversification, as well as the impact of normal and stress-responsive proteins on morphometric and physiological behaviors, could be used in breeding programs. These findings have immense potential for improving plant production and, therefore, can be regarded as prospective breeding platforms for medicinal plants that have an autogamous mode of reproduction. Finally, this review suggests that novel site-directed genome editing approaches such as TALENs (Transcription Activator-Like Effector Nucleases) and CRISPR (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats)/Cas9 (CRISPR-associated protein-9 nuclease) systems together with other new plant breeding technologies (NPBT) should simultaneously be taken into consideration for improvement of pharmaceutical plants.

Keywords: Andrographolide, xenogamy, crossbreeding, transcriptome analysis, metabolic pathways, molecular plant breeding

Alireza Valdiani, Daryush Talei, Surrinder K. Lattoo, Rodomiro Ortiz, Søren

Kjærsgaard Rasmussen, Jacqueline Batley, Mohd Yusop Rafii, Mahmood

Maziah, Kallevettankuzhy K. Sabu, Rambod Abiri, Suchirat Sakuanrungsirikul

& Soon Guan Tan

To cite this article: Alireza Valdiani, Daryush Talei, Surrinder K. Lattoo, Rodomiro

Ortiz, Søren Kjærsgaard Rasmussen, Jacqueline Batley, Mohd Yusop Rafii, Mahmood

Maziah, Kallevettankuzhy K. Sabu, Rambod Abiri, Suchirat Sakuanrungsirikul & Soon

Guan Tan (2017): Genoproteomics-assisted improvement of Andrographis paniculata:

toward a promising molecular and conventional breeding platform for autogamous

plants affecting the pharmaceutical industry, Critical Reviews in Biotechnology, DOI:

10.1080/07388551.2016.1260525

To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/07388551.2016.1260525