Molecular analysis of beet crop diversification

Abstract Domestication and diversification are the driving forces to generate the wide variety of currently available crop plants. Diversification of cultivated beets has resulted in four cultivar groups of very different phenotypes, i.e. leaf beets (chard), fodder beet, table beet, and sugar beet. The proposed research will address the question if domestication of beet crops occurred only once or multiple times. It will be investigated how the genomes of the different beet crops are related to each other. We will aim for the identification of diversification genes in order to understand the molecular basis of the phenotypic difference of the cultivar groups. To address theses goals, we will comprehensively search for genomic regions under artificial selection in beet crops. Whole-genome sequencing data will be generated, followed by an analysis of the data using cultivar-specific reference genomes (existing or newly prepared) and statistical interpretation of population differentiation. High-resolution mapping and subsequent characterization of genes will be performed to nominate candidate genes that are crucial for the diversification of beet cultivar groups. In summary, CultiBeet will create important knowledge on the domestication history of beets and will identify the pivotal genes which are involved in beet crop diversification. The experimental setup and computational analyses may serve as a general paradigm for crop diversification studies. Primary researchers involved The project will be jointly led by Ass. Prof. Dr. Juliane Dohm and Prof. Dr. Heinz Himmelbauer.