Pearl Millet Genome: Lessons from a Tough Crop

Debieu, Marilyne; Kanfany, Ghislain; Laplaze, Laurent

doi:10.1016/j.tplants.2017.09.006

Cited by 29 publications

(21 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…Pearl millet is a tough crop that can survive and yield in harsh low water and high-temperature conditions [ 2 , 3 , 8 ]. As such it is a great model to identify mechanisms involved in drought and heat stress tolerance in cereals.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Interestingly, the gene families related to wax, cutin and suberin biosynthesis and transport are expanded in pearl millet compared to other cereal crops [ 2 ]. It has been proposed that this might have contributed to heat and drought tolerance in pearl millet [ 2 , 3 ]. The KCS gene in the locus associated to biomass production under early drought stress might be related to these tolerance mechanisms.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, pearl millet lags behind the other cereal crops in terms of genetic improvement and its average yields are still low. The recent sequencing of its genome [ 2 ] opens the way to tap on its large genetic diversity to breed varieties and hybrids adapted to current and predicted future climatic constraints [ 3 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Response to early drought stress and identification of QTLs controlling biomass production under drought in pearl millet

et al. 2018

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Pearl millet plays a major role in food security in arid and semi-arid areas of Africa and India. However, it lags behind the other cereal crops in terms of genetic improvement. The recent sequencing of its genome opens the way to the use of modern genomic tools for breeding. Our study aimed at identifying genetic components involved in early drought stress tolerance as a first step toward the development of improved pearl millet varieties or hybrids. A panel of 188 inbred lines from West Africa was phenotyped under early drought stress and well-irrigated conditions. We found a strong impact of drought stress on yield components. This impact was variable between inbred lines. We then performed an association analysis with a total of 392,493 SNPs identified using Genotyping-by-Sequencing (GBS). Correcting for genetic relatedness, genome wide association study identified QTLs for biomass production in early drought stress conditions and for stay-green trait. In particular, genes involved in the sirohaem and wax biosynthesis pathways were found to co-locate with two of these QTLs. Our results might contribute to breed pearl millet lines with improved yield under drought stress.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Response to early drought stress and identification of QTLs controlling biomass production under drought in pearl millet

et al. 2018

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“…Pearl millet [ Pennisetum glaucum (L) R Br.] is a key cereal for food security in arid and semi-arid regions [ 41 ]. However, its yields are low and are often affected by climate unpredictability (heat waves and dry spells), which is forecast to worsen [ 42 , 43 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Aquaporins are main contributors to root hydraulic conductivity in pearl millet [Pennisetum glaucum (L) R. Br.]

et al. 2020

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Pearl millet is a key cereal for food security in arid and semi-arid regions but its yield is increasingly threatened by water stress. Physiological mechanisms relating to conservation of soil water or increased water use efficiency can alleviate that stress. Aquaporins (AQP) are water channels that mediate root water transport, thereby influencing plant hydraulics, transpiration and soil water conservation. However, AQP remain largely uncharacterized in pearl millet. Here, we studied AQP function in root water transport in two pearl millet lines contrasting for water use efficiency (WUE). We observed that these lines also contrasted for root hydraulic conductivity (Lpr) and AQP contribution to Lpr. The line with lower WUE showed significantly higher AQP contribution to Lpr. To investigate AQP isoforms contributing to Lpr, we developed genomic approaches to first identify the entire AQP family in pearl millet and secondly, characterize the plasma membrane intrinsic proteins (PIP) gene expression profile. We identified and annotated 33 AQP genes in pearl millet, among which ten encoded PIP isoforms. PgPIP1-3 and PgPIP1-4 were significantly more expressed in the line showing lower WUE, higher Lpr and higher AQP contribution to Lpr. Overall, our study suggests that the PIP1 AQP family are the main regulators of Lpr in pearl millet and may possibly be associated with mechanisms associated to whole plant water use. This study paves the way for further investigations on AQP functions in pearl millet hydraulics and adaptation to environmental stresses.

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“…However, pearl millet lags far behind other cereals in terms of breeding and its yield is low [4]. The recent sequencing of a reference genome and about 1, 000 accessions [4] open the way for a new era of genomic-based breeding in pearl millet [8]. However, this will depend on the availability of phenotyping methods to characterize and exploit the available genetic diversity and identify interesting target traits.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Development of a model estimating root length density from root impacts on a soil profile in pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum (L.) R. Br). Application to measure root system response to water stress in field conditions

Faye

Sine

Chopart³

et al. 2019

PLoS ONE

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Pearl millet is able to withstand dry and hot conditions and plays an important role for food security in arid and semi-arid areas of Africa and India. However, low soil fertility and drought constrain pearl millet yield. One target to address these constraints through agricultural practices or breeding is root system architecture. In this study, in order to easily phenotype the root system in field conditions, we developed a model to predict root length density (RLD) of pearl millet plants from root intersection densities (RID) counted on a trench profile in field conditions. We identified root orientation as an important parameter to improve the relationship between RID and RLD. Root orientation was notably found to depend on soil depth and to differ between thick roots (more anisotropic with depth) and fine roots (isotropic at all depths). We used our model to study pearl millet root system response to drought and showed that pearl millet reorients its root growth toward deeper soil layers that retain more water in these conditions. Overall, this model opens ways for the characterization of the impact of environmental factors and management practices on pearl millet root system development.

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Pearl Millet Genome: Lessons from a Tough Crop

Cited by 29 publications

References 9 publications

Response to early drought stress and identification of QTLs controlling biomass production under drought in pearl millet

Response to early drought stress and identification of QTLs controlling biomass production under drought in pearl millet

Aquaporins are main contributors to root hydraulic conductivity in pearl millet [Pennisetum glaucum (L) R. Br.]

Development of a model estimating root length density from root impacts on a soil profile in pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum (L.) R. Br). Application to measure root system response to water stress in field conditions

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