Common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) is the most important grain legume for human consumption and has a role in sustainable agriculture owing to its ability to fix atmospheric nitrogen. We assembled 473 Mb of the 587-Mb genome and genetically anchored 98% of this sequence in 11 chromosome-scale pseudomolecules. We compared the genome for the common bean against the soybean genome to find changes in soybean resulting from polyploidy. Using resequencing of 60 wild individuals and 100 landraces from the genetically differentiated Mesoamerican and Andean gene pools, we confirmed 2 independent domestications from genetic pools that diverged before human colonization. Less than 10% of the 74 Mb of sequence putatively involved in domestication was shared by the two domestication events. We identified a set of genes linked with increased leaf and seed size and combined these results with quantitative trait locus data from Mesoamerican cultivars. Genes affected by domestication may be useful for genomics-enabled crop improvement.

O objetivo deste trabalho foi detectar e mapear locos de caracteres quantitativos (QTL) que afetam os conteúdos de proteína e óleo em soja (Glycine max L. Merr.). Plantas F2, derivadas do cruzamento entre a linhagem CS3032PTA276 e a variedade UFVS2012, foram cultivadas em casa de vegetação e forneceram as folhas para extração e análise de DNA. Quarenta e oito marcadores microssatélites (SSR) polimórficos foram avaliados na população F2. A avaliação dos fenótipos foi realizada em 207 famílias das progênies F2:3, em um delineamento em blocos ao acaso, com três repetições, conduzido em Viçosa, MG, em 2006. Foram detectados quatro QTL associados ao conteúdo de proteína, nos grupos de ligação D1a, G, A1, e I, e três QTL associados ao conteúdo de óleo, nos grupos A1, I e O. A variação fenotípica explicada pelos QTL variou de 6,24 a 18,94% e 17,26 a 25,93%, respectivamente, para os conteúdos de proteína e óleo. Foram detectados novos QTL associados aos conteúdos de proteína e óleo, além dos previamente relatados em outros estudos. Regiões distintas das atualmente conhecidas podem estar envolvidas no controle genético do teor de proteína e óleo na soja.

-Most of cotton (Gossypium

-Water deficit at certain cotton growth stages can cause severe damage to crop development, affecting physiological processes and reducing reproductive structures, with consequent yield losses. The objective of this study was to evaluate the response of cotton cultivars under water deficit applied at different stages of the crop cycle. We compared the number of bolls per meter, cotton yield, and water use efficiency for eight different cotton cultivars under a water deficit of 15 days. We selected the following growth stages: Emergence (EM), First Square (FS), First Flower (FL), Peak Bloom (PB), and First Open Boll (FOB). The control treatment was irrigated with 100% ETc. The experiment was conducted in Apodi, RN State of Brazil, semiarid region, using a sprinkler irrigation system. The number of bolls per meter, cotton yield, and water use efficiency were influenced by the interaction of cultivars x deficit periods. Lowest values were observed for water suppression in the FL and PB stages. When the water deficit was imposed in the initial stages of growth (EM to FS) or after the FOB stage, the cotton yield reduction was not significant. At the same stage and water deficit, the behavior of the different cultivars was similar. Producers are urged to take this information into account when developing irrigation schemes for cotton crops, thereby avoiding water deficits during the most critical periods of the crop cycle.Key words: Irrigation Management. Shedding. Semiarid. RESPOSTA DO ALGODOEIRO AO DÉFICIT HÍDRICO EM DIFERENTES FASES DE CRESCIMENTORESUMO -O déficit hídrico em determinadas fases do ciclo de cultivo do algodoeiro pode causar severos danos, afetando as estruturas reprodutivas, acarretando perda na produtividade. O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar a resposta de cultivares de algodoeiro submetidas ao déficit hídrico em diferentes fases do ciclo de cultivo. Comparou-se o número de capulhos por metro, a produtividade e a eficiência no uso da água em oito cultivares de algodoeiro herbáceo, submetidas a déficit hídrico por 15 dias nos estádios: emergência, emissão do primeiro botão floral, emissão da primeira flor, emissão da primeira maçã, abertura do primeiro capulho e a testemunha irrigada com 100% da ETc. O experimento foi instalado no município de Apodi-RN, região Semiárida do Nordeste, em área irrigada por aspersão. O número de capulhos por metro, a produtividade de algodão em caroço e a eficiência de uso da água foram influenciadas pela interação cultivares x déficit hídrico. Os piores resultados foram observados para o déficit hídrico de 15 dias após a emissão da primeira maçã e da primeira flor. Quando o déficit hídrico foi imposto nas fases de crescimento inicial, após a emissão do primeiro botão floral e após a abertura do primeiro capulho, a perda de produtividade não foi significativa. Dentro de um mesmo período de déficit hídrico, as cultivares se comportaram de maneira similar. Os produtores devem levar essa informação em consideração para ouso da irrigação suplementar e para progr...

ABSTRACT. Using commercial cultivars to compose crossing blocks in cotton is a promising strategy, because these materials have desirable agronomic and technological characteristics. The objective of this study was to evaluate the genetic diversity among 16 cotton cultivars cultivated in two environments in the State of Mato Grosso, the largest national producer, using agronomical and technological traits. There was significant effect to cultivars for all traits, while genotype x environment interaction was significant only for average boll weight, short fiber index, and maturity of fibers. Therefore, because of the presence of genotype x environment interaction for three traits, we chose to study genetic diversity among cotton cultivars separately in each environment and investigate the interaction impact on the diversity among genotype pairs. Based on agronomical and technological performance and genetic diversity among cultivars in both environments, the most promising cross involves FM 910 and LD CV 02. We also observed that lint percentage and average boll weight presented a higher discrimination capacity in both environments.

The objective of this work was to identify by biometric analyses the most stable soybean parents, with higher oil or protein contents, cultivated at different seasons and locations of the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil. Forty-nine genotypes were evaluated in the municipalities of Viçosa, Visconde do Rio Branco, and São Gotardo, in the state of Minas Gerais, from 2009 to 2011. Protein and oil contents were analyzed by infrared spectrometry using a FT-NIR analyzer. The effects of genotype, environment, and genotype x environment interaction were significant. The BARC-8 soybean genotype is the best parent to increase protein contents in the progenies, followed by BR 8014887 and CS 3032PTA276-3-4. Selection for high oil content is more efficient when the crossings involve the Suprema, CD 01RR8384, and A7002 genotypes, which show high mean phenotypic values, wide adaptability, and greater stability to environmental variation.

Cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L. r. latifolium Hutch.) is one of the crops of greatest economic importance in Brazil. The changes in weaving technology, competition with synthetic fibers, and the globalization of cotton and textile production have increased the demand for better quality fibers. One of the characteristics to be improved is fiber length. Brazil traditionally produced and exported longer cotton fibers through the production of G. hirsutum L. r. marie galante, but this race has not been produced during the last 10 yr because of its perennial growth habit, which hinders control of the cotton boll weevil, Anthonomus grandis. This work studied some genetic aspects of fiber length in segregating generations of crosses between two upland cultivars, Guazuncho 2 (PI 606819) and Acala SJ4 (PI 529538). Single‐seed descent protocol and pedigree breeding procedures were used to advance generations. The fibers of the recombinant inbred lines (RILs) and those originated by pedigree procedure were evaluated by high‐volume instrument for length, lint percentage, and strength. The results suggest that it is possible to select materials with improved upper‐half mean length (UHML) that have values approaching a commercial extra‐long staple upland cultivar. A high percentage of the RILs also exhibited a UHML greater than 32 mm. Genetic gain for fiber length from the F4 to the F5 generation was 6.8%, indicating significant variability for UHML. The result indicates that simple methods of intrapopulational breeding may lead to genetic gains in UHML.

Fiber length stands out among technological traits as one that still needs to be improved in cotton. Thus, the objectives of this work were to quantify the interrelations between agronomic and technological fiber traits and to identify traits that could be used for the indirect selection of cotton genotypes with longer fiber lengths. Agronomic and technological traits were evaluated in 36 elite lines of cotton that were cultivated in three environments. Canonical correlations were estimated between two groups of traits: agronomic and technological. Path analysis was performed that considered fiber length as the primary dependent variable. The genotypes presented variability in all the evaluated traits, and no significant genotype vs. environmental interaction was observed for any of them. The main technological traits of cotton crops can be improved by an indirect selection of agronomic traits. The selection of cotton genotypes with a smaller size and a higher mean boll weight can be used to increase fiber length and improve other technological traits. Selection indices containing plant height, mean boll weight, fiber strength, and fiber uniformity can be one of the main strategies for the selection of cotton genotypes with a high yield of cotton bolls and long fibers.