Molecular Genetic Characterization of Lesquerella New Industrial Crop Using DArTseq Markers

DArTseq, a new SNP-based marker platform, was developed and used to analyze the genetic diversity of the US germplasm collection of  lesquerella. Lesquerella is a new oilseed crop in the Brassica family found native in the American Southwest. The potential of the species as a domestic source of industrial oils and unique fatty acids has been recognized by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Department of Energy. The breeding efforts on the crop are currently supported by a substantial number of germplasm accessions held ex situ in the National Plant Germplasm System.

A total of 27,748 DArTseq markers that have a scoring reproducibility greater than 99% was obtained in this study. The genetic similarity among Physaria fendleri, representatives of 17 other species of Physaria, and 7 species of Paysonia was found to be highly in agreement with previously assigned taxonomic groups based on morphological characters. The results likewise supported previous observations obtained from microarray DArT, the first DArT genotyping platform developed on the crop. For P. fendleri, additional analyses were performed using 24,024 SNPs with call rates ranging from 40-100%. This new DArTseq platform, along with microarray DArT will enhance the molecular tools available for studying lesquerella biology and management of existing germplasm collections.