Projects per year
Abstract
Germplasm with diverse, agronomically relevant traits forms the foundation of a successful plant breeding programme. Since 1993, the United Nations has been advocating the implementation of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and the subsequent 2002 Bonn Guidelines as international best practice on germplasm collection and use. In 2006, a European team made an expedition to Asia to collect wild germplasm of Miscanthus, a C4 perennial rhizomatous grass, for breeding an environmentally adaptable, resilient and high-yielding bioenergy crop. We outline general aspects of germplasm collection, conservation, breeding and biomass production evaluation while following the CBD’s guidelines, respecting biodiversity and conservation needs, and the ethical use of genetic resources.
Methods
Effective protocols, quarantine, methods for collecting seed and rhizomes, and a genebank for conservation were established. Versatile informatics and database architecture were used to assist in selection, flowering synchronization, crossing, evaluation, phenotyping and data integration. Approaches were formulated to comply with the CBD guidelines.
Key Results
A total of 303 accessions of M. sinensis, M. sacchariflorus and M. floridulus were collected from 158 geographically and environmentally diverse locations. These species were shown to accumulate different amounts of aerial biomass due to combinations of stem count, height and thickness. Progeny from one interspecies cross accumulated more biomass in early trials and has shown double the yield performance in years 3–4 compared with the existing commercial cultivar M. × giganteus. An example of an F1 hybrid has already demonstrated the long-term potential of exploiting this collection for a breeding programme.
Conclusions
By conforming to the CBD principles, the authors’ international collaboration provides a practical example of implementing the CBD. The collection widened the genetic diversity of Miscanthus available to allow for breeding of novel hybrids that exhibit more diverse traits to increase yield and resilience for growth on marginal land and in climate-challenged environments.
Original language | English |
---|---|
Article number | mcy231 |
Pages (from-to) | 591-604 |
Number of pages | 14 |
Journal | Annals of Botany |
Volume | 124 |
Issue number | 4 |
Early online date | 22 Dec 2018 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 13 Sept 2019 |
Keywords
- Miscanthus
- bioenergy
- plant breeding
- germplasm collection
- germplasm evaluation
- Convention on Biological Diversity
- CBD
- the Nagoya Protocol
- conservation
- biodiversity
- Bonn Guidelines
- ethical use of genetic resources
- Germplasm collection
- Germplasm evaluation
- Conservation
- The Nagoya Protocol
- Biodiversity
- Convention on biological diversity
- Plant breeding
- Bonn guidelines
- Bioenergy
- Ethical use of genetic resources
- United Nations
- Poaceae
- Europe
- Asia
Fingerprint
Dive into the research topics of 'Collecting wild Miscanthus germplasm in Asia for crop improvement and conservation in Europe whilst adhering to the guidelines of the United Nations’ Convention on Biological Diversity'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.Profiles
-
Iain Donnison
- Institute of Biological, Environmental & Rural Sciences (IBERS) - Professor, Head of Department - Biological Environmental and Rural Sciences
Person: Teaching And Research, Other
-
Lin Huang
- Institute of Biological, Environmental & Rural Sciences (IBERS) - Senior Lecturer
Person: Teaching And Research
Projects
- 5 Finished
-
BBSRC Core Strategic Programme in Resilient Crops: Miscanthus
Donnison, I. (PI)
Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council
01 Apr 2017 → 31 Mar 2020
Project: Externally funded research
-
Taiwan Innovation Exchange FLIP
Donnison, I. (PI)
Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council
01 Sept 2015 → 31 Dec 2015
Project: Externally funded research
-
Optimising biomass conversation on Miscanthus for bioenergy and industrial materials
Huang, L. (PI)
Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council
01 Jun 2013 → 31 May 2015
Project: Externally funded research
-
Genetic resources for the dissection of bioenergy traits
Donnison, I. (PI) & Clifton-Brown, J. (PI)
01 Apr 2012 → 31 Mar 2017
Project: Externally funded research
-
Molecular Genetics of Miscanthus
Donnison, I. (PI) & Clifton-Brown, J. (PI)
Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council
01 Apr 2008 → 31 Mar 2012
Project: Externally funded research