Genetic diversity of Colonial bentgrass Agrostis capillaris based on simple sequence repeat markers and high-resolution melt analysis with haplotype scoring

Authors: Warnke, Scott; Barnaby, Jinyoung

Submitted to: Crop Science
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 2/6/2023
Publication Date: 4/27/2023
Citation: Warnke, S.E., Barnaby, J.Y. 2023. Genetic diversity of Colonial bentgrass Agrostis capillaris based on simple sequence repeat markers and high-resolution melt analysis with haplotype scoring. Crop Science. https://doi.org/10.1002/csc2.20943.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/csc2.20943

Interpretive Summary: Colonial bentgrass is a turfgrass species that generally exhibits improved resistance to the important fungal disease dollar spot and is more tolerant to drought stress than the more widely grown creeping bentgrass. ARS scientists in Beltsville, MD created interspecific hybrids between these two species, and are using these populations to better understand the mechanisms of enhanced biotic and abiotic stress resistance in bentgrass. They used DNA markers to evaluate diversity in cultivated colonial bentgrasses and to determine if plants can be selected that have more potential for interspecific hybridization. The nine colonial bentgrass cultivars they examined showed limited levels of diversity, while the creeping bentgrass cultivar was distinct. Individual plants within each species had markers that were more common in the alternate species, suggesting that these markers may be useful for selecting genotypes with enhanced interspecific hybridization potential.

Technical Abstract: Colonial bentgrass (Agrostis capillaris) is a tetraploid rhizomatous bentgrass that generally exhibits improved resistance to the important fungal disease dollar spot and has more tolerance to water deficit stress than the more widely grown creeping bentgrass (A. stolonifera). Interspecific hybridization between these two species is possible and efforts to understand the genetic mechanisms of enhanced biotic and abiotic stress resistance in colonial bentgrass are proceeding. To gain a better understanding of the level of genetic diversity in cultivated colonial bentgrasses and to determine if genotypes with improved interspecific hybridization potential can be identified nine colonial bentgrass cultivars and one creeping bentgrass cultivar were screened with 48 colonial bentgrass derived Simple Sequence Repeat markers (SSR). Twenty-one primer pairs were found to produce reliable amplification and these markers were scored using High Resolution Melt analysis to generate haplotypes that were used to evaluate cultivar relationships. The nine colonial bentgrass cultivars could be placed into two groups and overall showed limited levels of diversity. The creeping bentgrass cultivar was distinct and individual genotypes within each species exhibited haplotypes more common in the alternate species suggesting that these markers may be useful for selecting genotypes with enhanced interspecific hybridization potential.