BackgroundRestriction-site associated DNA sequencing (RADseq) technology was recently employed to identify a large number of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) for linkage mapping of a North American and Eastern Asian Populus species. However, there is also the need for high-density genetic linkage maps for the European aspen (P. tremula) as a tool for further mapping of quantitative trait loci (QTLs) and marker-assisted selection of the Populus species native to Europe.ResultsWe established a hybrid F1 population from the cross of two aspen parental genotypes diverged in their phenological and morphological traits. We performed RADseq of 122 F1 progenies and two parents yielding 15,732 high-quality SNPs that were successfully identified using the reference genome of P. trichocarpa. 2055 SNPs were employed for the construction of maternal and paternal linkage maps. The maternal linkage map was assembled with 1000 SNPs, containing 19 linkage groups and spanning 3054.9 cM of the genome, with an average distance of 3.05 cM between adjacent markers. The paternal map consisted of 1055 SNPs and the same number of linkage groups with a total length of 3090.56 cM and average interval distance of 2.93 cM. The linkage maps were employed for QTL mapping of one-year-old seedlings height variation. The most significant QTL (LOD = 5.73) was localized to LG5 (96.94 cM) of the male linkage map, explaining 18% of the phenotypic variation.ConclusionsThe set of 15,732 SNPs polymorphic in aspen and high-density genetic linkage maps constructed for the P. tremula intra-specific cross will provide a valuable source for QTL mapping and identification of candidate genes facilitating marker-assisted selection in European aspen.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s12870-017-1127-y) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

BackgroundAlike to Reduced height-1 (Rht-1) genes in wheat and the semi dwarfing (sd-1) gene in rice, the sdw1/denso locus involved in the metabolism of the GA, was designated as the ‘Green Revolution’ gene in barley. The recent molecular characterization of the candidate gene HvGA20ox2 for sdw1/denso locus allows to estimate the impact of the functional polymorphism of this gene on the variation of agronomically important traits in barley.ResultsWe investigated the effect of the 7-bp deletion in exon 1 of HvGA20ox2 gene (sdw1.d mutation) on the variation of yield-related and malting quality traits in the population of DHLs derived from cross of medium tall barley Morex and semi-dwarf barley Barke. Segregation of plant height, flowering time, thousand grain weight, grain protein content and grain starch was evaluated in two diverse environments separated from one another by 15° of latitude. The 7-bp deletion in HvGA20ox2 gene reduced plant height by approximately 13 cm and delayed flowering time by 3–5 days in the barley segregating DHLs population independently on environmental cue. On other hand, the sdw1.d mutation did not affect significantly either grain quality traits (protein and starch content) or thousand grain weight.ConclusionsThe beneficial effect of the sdw1.d allele could be associated in barley with lodging resistance and extended period of vegetative growth allowing to accumulate additional biomass that supports higher yield in certain environments. However, no direct effect of the sdw1.d mutation on thousand grain weight or grain quality traits in barley was detected.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s12870-017-1121-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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Net form of net blotch (NFNT) is the most dangerous and devastating disease of barley causing huge losses in Russia. Highly effective gene rpt 5 determining resistance to net blotch pathogen in Russia was used in the study. A set of 95 winter barley indigenous and exotic varieties were studied to identify the genotypes with the alleles of 153 and 155 bp for the locus bmag173 and the alleles of 186, 188, 192 bp for the locus hvm74 exhibiting resistance to the net blotch pathogen (Pyrenophora teres Drechs. f. teres) occurring in North Caucasus region of Russia.

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