AUTHOR=Muñoz-Amatriaín María , Hernandez Javier , Herb Dustin , Baenziger P. Stephen , Bochard Anne Marie , Capettini Flavio , Casas Ana , Cuesta-Marcos Alfonso , Einfeldt Claus , Fisk Scott , Genty Amelie , Helgerson Laura , Herz Markus , Hu Gongshe , Igartua Ernesto , Karsai Ildiko , Nakamura Toshiki , Sato Kazuhiro , Smith Kevin , Stockinger Eric , Thomas William , Hayes Patrick 

TITLE=Perspectives on Low Temperature Tolerance and Vernalization Sensitivity in Barley: Prospects for Facultative Growth Habit

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Plant Science

VOLUME=Volume 11 - 2020

YEAR=2020

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/plant-science/articles/10.3389/fpls.2020.585927

DOI=10.3389/fpls.2020.585927

ISSN=1664-462X

ABSTRACT=One option to achieving greater resiliency for barley production in the face of climate change is to explore the potential of winter and facultative growth habits: for both types, low temperature tolerance (LTT) and vernalization sensitivity are key traits. Sensitivity to short day photoperiod is a desirable attribute for facultative types.  In order to broaden our understanding of the genetics of these phenotypes, we mapped QTLs and identified candidate genes using a GWAS panel comprised of 882 barley accessions that was genotyped with the Illumina 9K SNP chip. Fifteen loci including five known and ten novel QTL/genes were identified for LTT - assessed as winter survival in ten field tests and mapped using a GWAS meta-analysis. FR-H1, FR-H2 and FR-H3 were major drivers of LTT, and candidate genes were identified for FR-H3. The principal determinants of vernalization sensitivity were VRN-H1, VRN-H2, and PPD-H1. VRN-H2 deletions conferred insensitive or intermediate sensitivity to vernalization. A subset of accessions with maximum LTT were identified as a resource for allele mining and further characterization. Facultative types comprised a small portion of the GWAS panel but may be useful for developing germplasm with this growth habit.