“Breeding for Quality Traits”

 

UNIVERSITY OF AGRICULTURAL SCIENCES, BANGALORE

DEPARTMENT OF GENETICS AND PLANT BREEDING

M.Sc. Seminar - GPB 582 (0+1)

“Breeding for Quality Traits”

In recent years, with rising concerns over malnutrition, hidden hunger, and food industry demands, the role of plant breeders has become more vital than ever. Breeding for quality traits integrates traditional selection, molecular tools, and biotechnological approaches to develop crop varieties that are not only high-yielding but also nutrient-dense, palatable, and suitable for industrial use.

Quality traits in crops are broadly classified into morphological, organoleptic, nutritional, and biological quality traits. Among strategies to address micronutrient deficiencies, biofortification stands out as a powerful approach. It can be achieved through agronomic practices, conventional breeding, molecular techniques, and genetic modification. For instance, marker-assisted pyramiding of eight QTLs/genes related to seven different traits has been successfully implemented in common wheat (Triticum aestivum), using the elite cultivar PBW343 as the genetic background to enhance grain quality. Zinc-rich rice varieties such as BRRI Dhan 62 (Bangladesh) and DRR Dhan 45 (India) have been developed via conventional breeding. In tomato, silencing of the Polygalacturonase (PG) gene using antisense technology prevents the production of the softening enzyme, thereby improving fruit shelf life.¹

Iron- and zinc-enriched rice offers a sustainable and cost-effective strategy to combat malnutrition. A BC₂F₅ population from a cross between RP-Bio226 and Sampada was used to identify genomic regions/QTLs linked to grain Fe and Zn content, revealing two major QTLs for Fe and three for Zn, useful for developing nutrient-rich, high-yielding rice through marker-assisted selection.²

In peanut, in vitro mutagenesis using Pingyangmycin (PYM) and directional selection under Hydroxyproline (HYP)-induced osmotic stress led to the development of high-oil content varieties like Yuhua 4, Yuhua 9, and Yuhua 14.³

Breeding for quality traits is about making our food not just more abundant, but also more nutritious, safer, and better suited for its intended use, ultimately benefiting both producers and consumers. However, its success depends on effective implementation, continuous research, and widespread adaptation in affected regions.

REFERENCES

1. Jones, A. and Patel, B., 2021. Emerging technologies for enhancing the shelf life of horticultural crops. J. Postharvest Technol., 15(2): 123–135.

2. Dixit, S., Singh, U.M., Abbai, R., Ram, T., Singh, V.K., Paul, A., Virk, P.S. and Kumar, A., 2019. Identification of genomic regions responsible for high iron and zinc content in rice. Sci. Rep., 9(1): 8136.

3. Lei, S.H.I., Yue, L.I.U., Ming-Xia, Z.H.A.O., Xia, W.A.N.G., Li-Xian, Q.I.A.O., Jiong-Ming, S.U.I., Guan, L.I., Hong, Z.H.U. and Shan-Lin, Y.U., 2020. Development of peanut with high oil content by in vitro mutagenesis and screening. J. Inter. Agric., 19(12): 2974–2982.