Mapping quantitative trait loci through the use of linkage disequilibrium (LD) in populations of unrelated individuals provides a valuable approach for dissecting the genetic basis of complex traits in soybean (Glycine max). The haplotype-based genome-wide association study (GWAS) has now been proposed as a complementary approach to intensify benefits from LD, which enable to assess the genetic determinants of agronomic traits. In this study a GWAS was undertaken to identify genomic regions that control 100-seed weight (SW), plant height (PH) and seed yield (SY) in a soybean association mapping panel using single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers and haplotype information. The soybean cultivars (N = 169) were field-evaluated across four locations of southern Brazil. The genome-wide haplotype association analysis (941 haplotypes) identified eleven, seventeen and fifty-nine SNP-based haplotypes significantly associated with SY, SW and PH, respectively. Although most marker-trait associations were environment and trait specific, stable haplotype associations were identified for SY and SW across environments (i.e., haplotypes Gm12_Hap12). The haplotype block 42 on Chr19 (Gm19_Hap42) was confirmed to be associated with PH in two environments. These findings enable us to refine the breeding strategy for tropical soybean, which confirm that haplotype-based GWAS can provide new insights on the genetic determinants that are not captured by the single-marker approach.

The aim of this study was to examine the genetic control of time-to-flowering (precocity) in 39 open-pollinated families of Eucalyptus cladocalyx in southern Atacama Desert, Chile, with the view to the selection of trees that flower earlier but with minimal impact on survival and growth. A Bayesian approach, implemented using Gibbs sampling algorithm, was used in data analyses. Precocity was assessed as a binary response at age three and was found to be highly heritable. The estimates of posterior mean and of the 95% posterior interval of the heritability were 0.51 and [0.46-0.56], respectively. Estimated genetic gain ranged from 36.15 to 41.22% (selection intensities of 14.29 and 7.48%, respectively). Total height, basal diameter and survival (measured at age 5) had a positive and relatively moderate genetic correlation with early flowering (r = 0.23, 0.29 and 0.11, respectively) indicating that selection for early flowering alone would have a moderate impact on growth and survival. Early flowering of Eucalyptus cladocalyx was found to be highly heritable in southern Atacama Desert populations, which could be used to improve the honey production in situations where flowers from native species are not available in sufficient quantities.

Traits related to plant lodging and architecture are important determinants of plant productivity in intensive maize cultivation systems. Motivated by the identification of genomic associations with the leaf angle, plant height (PH), ear height (EH) and the EH/PH ratio, we characterized approximately 7,800 haplotypes from a set of high-quality single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), in an association panel consisting of tropical maize inbred lines. The proportion of the phenotypic variations explained by the individual SNPs varied between 7%, for the SNP S1_285330124 (located on chromosome 9 and associated with the EH/PH ratio), and 22%, for the SNP S1_317085830 (located on chromosome 6 and associated with the leaf angle). A total of 40 haplotype blocks were significantly associated with the traits of interest, explaining up to 29% of the phenotypic variation for the leaf angle, corresponding to the haplotype hap LA4.04, which was stable over two growing seasons. Overall, the associations for PH, EH and the EH/PH ratio were environment-specific, which was confirmed by performing a model comparison analysis using the information criteria of Akaike and Schwarz. In addition, five stable haplotypes (83%) and 15 SNPs (75%) were identified for the leaf angle. Finally, approximately 62% of the associated haplotypes (25/40) did not contain SNPs detected in the association study using individual SNP markers. This result confirms the advantage of haplotype-based genome-wide association studies for examining genomic regions that control the determining traits for architecture and lodging in maize plants.

Drought is likely the main abiotic stress that affects wheat yield. The identification of drought-tolerant genotypes represents an effective way of dealing with the continuous decrease in water resources as well as the increase in world population. The aim of this study was to identify single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) associated with drought tolerance indices in wheat by using a genome-wide association study (GWAS) under fully irrigated and rain-fed conditions. The drought tolerance indices (i.e., Stress Susceptibility Index, Stress Tolerance Index, Tolerance Index and Yield Stability Index) were calculated based on grain yield, 1,000-kernel weight and kernels per spike. The association panel was genotyped using genotyping-bysequencing (GBS). A total of 175 SNPs exhibited statistical evidence of association with at least one drought tolerance index, explaining up to 6 % of the phenotypic variation. Forty-five SNPs were associated with more than one tolerance index (up to 4 agronomic traits). Most associations were located on chromosome 4A, supporting the hypothesis that this chromosome has a key role in drought tolerance which should be exploited for wheat improvement. In addition, statistical analysis detected SNPs associated with tolerance indices in both growing seasons, providing information about genetic regions with stable effects under different environmental conditions. This GWAS experiment serves as one of the few studies on association mapping for drought tolerance indices in wheat, which could increase the efficiency of rain-fed and irrigated crop production.

Association mapping has been proposed to identify polymorphisms involved in phenotypic variations and may prove useful in identifying interesting alleles for breeding purposes. Using this approach, a total of 382 cultivars and advanced lines of spring wheat obtained from three breeding programs (Chile, Uruguay and CIMMYT) were evaluated for plant height (PH), kernels per spike (KS), 1,000 kernel weight (TKW), grain yield and carbon isotope discrimination (D 13 C) and tested for genotyping-bysequencing-derived SNP markers across the hexaploid wheat genome. A Bayesian clustering approach via Markov chain Monte Carlo was performed to examine the genetic differentiation (F ST ) among different genetic groups. The results indicated the existence of two distinct and strongly differentiated genetic groups. Cluster I contained 215 genotypes (56.3 %), over 60 % (137/215) of which were collected from CI-MMYT. Cluster II showed the highest F ST value, according to 95 % credible interval. Linkage disequilibrium (LD) among SNPs was calculated for the A, B and D genomes and at the whole-genome level. LD decayed over a longer genetic distance for the D genome than for the A and B genomes. In the A and B genomes, LD declined to 50 % of its initial value at about 2 cM. In the D genome, LD was much more extensive, declining to 50 % of its initial value only at 22 cM. In the whole genome, LD declined to 50 % of its initial value at an average of 4 cM. Important genomic regions associated with complex traits in Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (spring wheat were identified. Selection on these regions may increase the efficiency of the current breeding programs. Although most of the associations were environment specific, some stable associations were detected for D 13 C, KS, PH and TKW. Chromosomes 1A, 3A, 4A and 5A were the most important chromosomes, as they comprised quantitative trait loci (QTL) for D 13 C, a trait that can be used as an indirect tool for increased water-use efficiency in wheat. Environment-specific genomic regions were detected, indicating the presence of QTL-by-environment interaction. To produce suitable genotypes under contrasting water availability conditions, QTL 9 E interactions (and genotype-by-environment interaction) should be considered in the current spring wheat breeding program.