Estimates of genetic parameters for juvenile traits in macaw palm

Abstract

Acrocomia aculeata (Jacq.) Lodd. ex. Mart. (Arecaceae) is a neotropical oil palm of widespread occurrence in the American continent and with great economic potential for the energy and food sectors. Genetic breeding studies for the species are very recent, with a need for basic knowledge from the genetic diversity in agronomic traits. Thus, the aim of this work was to estimate genetic variance, heritability, and genetic gain as well as to propose strategies of selection. Two-year evaluations of eight agromorphological characteristics were carried out in two experimental fields composed of 50 open-pollinated progenies. The results revealed moderate heritability for progeny average to thorn density in the abaxial side (ℎ " #$ % = 0.402 in Pindorama) and relative chlorophyll index (ℎ " #$ % = 0.458 in Presidente Prudente). The selective accuracy was 0.634 and 0.677 for the same traits, respectively. In the combined analysis, the higher values of heritability were obtained to thorn density on the abaxial region of leaves and relative chlorophyll index (0.616 and 0.666, respectively).Moderate to high magnitude values of genetic gain was reached for traits with greatest agronomic interest, as plant height G s (%) = 19.64, number of leaves G s (%) = 26.43, stipe diameter at breast height G s (%) = 12.51, and relative chlorophyll index G s (%) = 38.12. In conclusion, the results indicate considerable genetic variability for the evaluated traits and suggest that their most effective use for the purpose of genetic gains would be based on the combined selection between and within progenies.

Phenotypic and genotypic evaluation of Parkia platycephala families: a proposal for pre-selection

“…Therefore, we can see that the families that had plantlets with best vigor (VIGP) also showed high values for germination, index of germination speed (IGSP), and total plantlet length in Test I, and total height (HEIF) and diameter at ground level (DGLF) in Test III (Figure 2). The phenotypic variation observed between families may indicate the possibility of identifying important morphophysiological traits (Lustri et al 2021). Families 20, 22, 23, 27, 29, and 30 had low phenotypic mean values for the 21 evaluated traits and appear more to the left of the graph.…”

“…The families that stood out are excellent candidates for pre-selection, as they performed well from the plantlet stage and show a coincidence across rankings of 61% (Table 2). The efficiency of a genetic improvement program can be expressed by the genetic gain over time (Lustri et al 2021); therefore, the selection of potential mother trees should be based on well characterized families with positive genetic gains (Garuzzo et al 2021).…”

“…The goals of implementing such tests include genetic conservation, the formation of seed orchards, pre-breeding, domestication, and the development of genetic improvement programs (Souza et al 2021). Besides enabling the phenotypic and genotypic characterization of the population of interest, provenance and progeny tests also provide information about genitors based on an evaluation of their descendants (Lustri et al 2021).…”

“…The characterization of the genetic variability of base populations of forest species in the form of progeny tests has been well documented in research carried out under field conditions (Garuzzo et al 2021, Lustri et al 2021, Souza et al 2021. As a way of anticipating this characterization, morphophysiological assessments at the seedling (Kampa et al 2020) and plantlet stages (Menegatti et al 2016, Corrêa et al 2021) have also been conducted.…”

Genetic gains for obtaining improved progenies of oil palm in Colombia

“…In a perennial species such as oil palm, the estimation of genetic gain per unit of time (productive life cycle or the time to carry out a breeding cycle) can identify the efficiency of the methods used in a breeding program (Lustri et al 2021). The available reports of the values of genetic gains (Δg) for oil palm are scarce.…”