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Crop production systems need to expand their outputs sustainably to feed a burgeoning human population. Advances in genome sequencing technologies combined with efficient trait mapping procedures accelerate the availability of beneficial alleles for breeding and research. Enhanced interoperability between different omics and phenotyping platforms, leveraged by evolving machine learning tools, will help provide mechanistic explanations for complex plant traits. Targeted and rapid assembly of beneficial alleles using optimized breeding strategies and precise genome editing techniques could deliver ideal crops for the future. Realizing desired productivity gains in the field is imperative for securing an adequate future food supply for 10 billion people. Need for food securitySafeguarding a person's right to adequate and nutritious food requires intensive research efforts and innovative solutions to breed nutritious crops with improved productivity and resilience [1]. However, a major challenge is the uneven distribution of resources, resulting in a huge gap in supply and demand for food. Crop productivity and harvest are improved by access to modern infrastructure and technologies, including breeding for improved varieties, agronomic practices, and machinery for farm preparation, harvest, processing, and marketing.Regions with high populations and low crop production should be studied to address these uneven distribution challenges and provide equitable opportunities. Lessons learned from the pandemic highlight the need for self-sustainability, with less dependence on imports, especially for agriculture. For instance, a vast portion of the entire global population resides in low-income food deficit countries (32.23%), least developed countries (12%), and net food-importing developing countries (20.15%) i,ii . Therefore, enhancing crop productivity and addressing the worldwide zero hunger and nutrition food security challenges through modern breeding technologies, infrastructure, agronomic practices, and soil improvement remains essential. Sequencing and phenotyping technologies for understanding genomic variationA high-quality reference genome (see Glossary) is a prerequisite for genomics studies in a given crop to attain accurate and precise results on crop performance [2]. High-confidence variant calling facilitated by the availability of a high-quality reference genome, is crucial for genetic studies such as gene discovery and manipulation. 'Democratization' of sequencing technologies in concert with advanced informatics tools has improved the contiguity and completeness of existing and genome assemblies. Since a single reference genome cannot capture all genomic variations of a species, an increased number of gold-or platinum-standard reference genomes have become available for several crops. Long-read or linked-read sequencing platforms, such as PacBio, 10X Chromium, and Oxford Nanopore, supplemented by short reads from next-generation sequencing (NGS), allow the assembly of long contigs with high base-to-base...

Camelina (Camelina sativa (L.) Crantz) is an oilseed known for its potential as a low-input biofuel feedstock and its high levels of beneficial fatty acids. We investigated the role of geographical origin in genetic variation and fatty acid content, expecting to find significant variability among 53 accessions and a link between ecogeography and both origin and key oil traits. Amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) fingerprinting revealed high levels of diversity within the 53 accessions. Even though sampling was relatively biased towards the Russian-Ukrainian area, this region was identified as a genetic diversity hotspot and possible centre of origin for camelina. The accessions were categorized by principal coordinate analysis using molecular marker data, enabling identification of links between geographical distribution and these categories. The influence of geographic location on four canola oil quality measures in camelina was evaluated using a geographic information system. These measures were (1) more than 30% alpha-linolenic acid, (2) less than 3% erucic acid, (3) less than 10% saturated fatty acids, and (4) a ratio of alpha-linolenic to linoleic acid greater than 1. The results clearly confirm that camelina oil quality characteristics are strongly influenced by environmental factors. The unprecedented high genetic diversity in this group of accessions offers an excellent opportunity to investigate valuable genes for successful adaptation of camelina to specific ecogeographical conditions such as drought.

Efforts to improve the yield and quality of cultivated chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) are constrained by a low level of intraspecific genetic diversity. Increased genetic diversity can be achieved via the hybridisation of the cultivated species with the unimproved 'wild' relatives from within the 43 species of the Cicer genus. To date, the 8 species sharing an annual growth habit and chromosome number with C. arietinum have been the primary focus of screening and introgression efforts. Screening of these species has uncovered morphological characteristics and resistance to a number of abiotic and biotic stresses that are of potential value to chickpea improvement programs. Detailed analysis of protein and DNA, karyotyping, and crossability studies have begun to elucidate the relationships between the annual Cicer species. In comparison, perennial species have received little attention due to difficulties in collection, propagation, and evaluation. This review discusses the progress towards an understanding of genetic relationships between the Cicer species, and the introgression of genes from the wild Cicer species into the cultivated species.