Abstract:There are about 1000 species of Salvia L. in the world， and a large number of species have been developed in many aspects of medicine， ornamental， edible as well as essential oils and health care. In China， there are abundant germplasm resources including 84 species and 24 varieties， while only one native species， Salvia miltiorrhiza Bunge， is widely cultivated and used for medicinal purpose. It is urgent to investigate and classify their growth habits， morphological characteristics and horticultural characteristics， in order to promote their efficient development and popularization. Based on classical taxonomy and solid data obtained from field investigation and cultivation observation in the past 13 years， this article focuses on the classification and characterization of the horticultural characteristics of Salvia L.， including six aspects， such as end-use， flowering period， flower color， flower size， stem characteristics and garden shape. Spring-flowered （April-June）， summer-flowered （July-August）， and autumn-flowered （September-November） types were classified according to flowering periods， while purple， blue， red， pink， yellow and white flower styles were categorized based on flower colors. There were four levels for flower sizes： small （<1.5 cm）， medium （1.5-3.0 cm）， medium-large （3.0-4.5 cm）， and large （＞4.5 cm）， and three forms for stem types： trailing， cespitose， and erect. Notable flexibility were displayed in garden shape by a number of germplasms. The majority of domestic sage resources are the cespitose herbs with medium-sized （large） purple and blue flowers that bloom in the spring. This study improved the applied classification system of Salvia L.， and provided reference for further development and extensive application of Salvia L. species in China.

Abstract:Agricultural germplasm resources mainly include crops， livestock and poultry， agricultural microorganisms and medicinal plants. There are 134，000 crop germplasm resources preserved in China， among which 74，000 are rice germplasm resources. How to accurately evaluate and utilize such huge rice germplasm resources is of great significance in rice germplasm innovation and breeding. In this paper， we reviewed the progress in collection， evaluation and accurate identification of rice germplasm resources， creation of new strains of rice， utilization of heterosis of rice， new techniques and methods of rice germplasm creation， and exploration and utilization of excellent genetic resources of rice， and summarized a new model of rice germplasm resource creation and utilization. Finally， this article discussed the current problems of rice core germplasm construction， germplasm resources identification and mining， and germplasm resources sharing and win-win mechanism. At the same time， we analyzed and prospeced how to strengthen the construction of specialized core seed resources， the accurate identification of germplasm resources， the innovative research of germplasm resources， the sharing mechanism of germplasm resources and the cooperation and exchange of germplasm resources， in order to provide some reference and help for further development of the identification， evaluation and innovative utilization of rice germplasm resources.

Abstract:Grain hardness and HMW-GS play a key role in wheat quality. In order to explore and utilize favorable allelic variants of wheat hardness Puroindoline gene and HMW-GS to improve the quality of medium-strong gluten， molecular detection of both genes and quality traits were analyzed in 94 wheat germplasms which mainly include varieties in the Low and Middle Yangtze River Valley Wheat Zone， as well as high quality wheat varieties or landraces in other wheat zones. The results showed that the grain hardness was ranged from 7.21 to 72.91. There were 42 soft wheat accounting for 44.68%， 42 hard wheat accounting for 44.68%， and 10 mixed wheat accounting for 10.64%. Five alleles at the Puroindoline locus were detected， including Pina-D1b/Pinb-D1a，Pina-D1r/Pinb-D1a，Pina-D1s/Pinb-D1a，Pina-D1a/Pinb-D1b and Pina-D1a/Pinb-D1p， with quantity of 8， 3， 1， 29 and 9 respectively. The hardness of different Puroindoline alleles ranked in the order： Pina-D1r/Pinb-D1a＞Pina-D1s/Pinb-D1a＞Pina-D1b/Pinb-D1a＞Pina-D1a/Pinb-D1p＞Pina-D1a/Pinb-D1b. HMW-GS subunits 1 and Null accounted for 53.33% and 45.56% respectively at Glu-A1 locus and one with 1^G330E. 7+8 and 7+9 subunits accounted for 47.78% and 46.67% respectively at Glu-B1 locus. Furthermore， there were three wheat varieties carrying 14+15 subunits， one carrying 7^OE+8^* and one carrying 6+8 at Glu-B1 locus. 2+12 and 5+10 subunits accounted for 61.11% and 38.89% respectively. For SDS sedimentation value， there were no significant difference between 1 and Null subunits at Glu-A1 locus and 7+8 and 7+9 at Glu-B1 locus. The SDS sedimentation value of 5+10 subunits was higher than 2+12 subunits at Glu-D1 locus. A significant positive correlation between hardness and SDS sedimentation value was detected. The SDS sedimentation value was contributed by grain hardness， greater than that of HMW-GS. The genotypes of Puroindoline and HMW-GS and phenotypes of wheat germplasms were analyzed in this study， which provided a reference for the genetic improvement of wheat quality， especially for medium-strong gluten wheat.

Abstract:Understanding plant responses to pathogen invasion is important for identifying resistance genes. In this experiment， the seedlings of wheat variety Zhongzuo 9504 were inoculated by powdery mildew， in order to observe the changes of growth， physiological metabolism-related indexes and gene expression in wheat leaves at 0 h， 6 h， 1 d， 4 d and 7 d after infestation. This study attempted to reveal the response mechanism of powdery mildew inoculation on the growth， osmoregulatory substances and reactive oxygen species in wheat. The results showed that with the increase of inoculation time， the number of dead cells， and the activity of peroxidase and superoxide anion in wheat leaves tended to increase. The powdery mildew produced mature secondary conidia 7 days post inoculation. Phenylalanine ammonia-lyase and polyphenol oxidase functioned at different infestation times. Soluble protein content basically showed an increasing trend， chlorophyll content decreased significantly at 7 d， which in turn affected plant growth. No significant changes on hydrogen peroxide content was observed throughout the inoculation period. Transcriptome analysis revealed that PTI signaling was partially inhibited and down-regulated at the initial stage of inoculation （0 h to 6 h）. PTI signaling responded positively in the early and middle stages （6 h to1 d and 1 d to 4 d）， while ETI appeared in the early stage. In the late stage of infestation （4 d to 7 d）， there was a down-regulation tendency on both the PTI and ETI signaling pathways， as powdery mildew had colonized the surface of the leaf completely， thus compromising photosynthesis in wheat.

Abstract:In order to explore the genetic mechanism of wheat seminal root formation and growth， 198 wheat natural cultivars growing in the Huang-Huai Area were investigated in this study. The total first grade branch number， branch density， length， surface area， volume and average diameter of the radicle were examined using 21 days old seedlings in the hydroponic culture. Q+K mixed linear model， in conjugation with the genotyping results by the 660K gene chip， was used to conduct genome-wide association analysis （GWAS） at radicle traits， followed by functional annotation and candidate gene mining of significant and repeatedly-detected association sites. At the six radicle growth traits， a continuous and normal or nearly normal distribution were observed， with coefficient of variation of 5.56%-22.10%. A total of 136 significant association sites were detected. They were distributed on the chromosomes except 7B， each of which could explain 5.10%-13.60% of phenotypic variation. Thirteen significant pleiotropic sites were identified from those 136 sites. Based on the annotation， 16 candidate genes that may be related to radicle growth were found， such as TraesCS4A01G023100， TraesCS1B01G294400， TraesCS4A01G006200. These genes were proposed to be involved in the formation of wheat radicle root system by regulating DNA topoisomerase， ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme E2， phosphoinositide phosphatase family protein and so on. The results of this study provided a reference for the construction of wheat root regulation network， as well as the optimization of root architecture and function.

Abstract:A two-year field trials and agronomic performance analysis were conducted in 179 foxtail millet accessions which are homonyms of the four famous landraces （Qinzhouhuang， Taohuami， Longshanxiaomi and Jinmi），as well as exploring the genetic relationships between the materials. Fifty-one accessions including the four original varieties were subjected for nutritional quality analysis. The significant differences on quantitative traits were detected in 179 accessions， while the quality traits were detected without much differences. Through the correlation analysis， a highly significant positive correlation between kernel weight of single ear and ear weight， as well as stalk weight and ear weight， were found. Principal component analysis showed that the first three principal components contributed to 89.414% of the cumulative variation. Gained from the composite score F-value calculated based on the results of principal component analysis， we observed the highest and lowest composite scores in Bocaigen-30 （F=7.42） and Yintianhan-27 （F=-9.17）， respectively. Cluster analysis based on agronomic traits revealed that the 179 accessions were classified into four clusters with relatively concentrated clustering within homonyms varieties and greater similarity of agronomic traits. The results of phylogenetic relationships indicate that there are diverse evolutionary relationships among different varieties with the same name， and there may be gene exchange between different varieties with different names. The differences in nutritional quality among the four categories of famous foxtail millet were small， and the differences in all nutritional quality indexes except crude fiber were not significant. The crude protein and crude fat was positively correlated， while starch negatively correlated with protein and fat. The first six major components explained 88.414% of the cumulative variation and could basically cover the information of the 10 nutritional qualities. Based on the principal component analysis of nutritional qualities， the top ranked varieties were Bocaigen-77， Bocaigen-33， Bocaigen-44， Papocao-15， Jugenqi-25 and Yintianhan-13， combined with the comprehensive scores of different accessions.This study identifies and studies the agronomic traits， quality traits， and phylogenetic relationships of the four famous foxtail millet groups， which is of great significance for the protection and utilization of germplasm resources， as well as the excavation of excellent resources.

Abstract:Based on "The Third National Campaign of Crop Germplasm Census and Collection"， genetic diversity analysis， correlation analysis， cluster analysis and principal component analysis were used to study and evaluate 136 sorghum germplasm resources collected from 2020 to 2021 in Hebei province. The results showed that there were abundant phenotypic variations in the collection. The diversity index of 15 phenotypic traits ranged from 0.0844 to 1.9926， and the coefficient of variation ranged from 4.69% to 68.00%. The genetic diversity of 1000-grain weight and the coefficient of variation of panicle shape were the highest. A significant positive correlation between plant height and panicle traits was detected. These germplasms were divided into three groups by cluster analysis， while three clusters didn’t correlate with the geographic collection sites. Cluster I showed the best performance in panicle traits and could be used in breeding for technical purposes. The plant height of cluster II was low， which can be used as dwarf resources in germplasm innovation. Cluster III showed the best yield traits which can be used in breeding for higher grain production. Principal component analysis simplified phenotypic trait factors into 5 principal components， with the cumulative contribution rate of 60.182%. The plant height， the panicle and grain traits were the main factors contributing to the phenotypic differences. Based on the comprehensive scores of 136 sorghum germplasms that ranged from 0.107 to 1.147， the top 10 elite germplasm resources such as Suning sorghum， Changsui sorghum， Tiaozhou sorghum and Luoshu were selected. Collectively， based on the evaluation of these newly collected sorghum germplasm resources in Hebei province， this study provided insights for the mining of elite sorghum germplasm and the innovative utilization of germplasm.

Abstract:Evaluating the genetic relationship of sweetpotato varieties is an important prerequisite for understanding their genetic background and effectively utilizing germplasm resources. Using 23 pairs of InDel primers developed by our research group， genotype analysis was conducted on 305 registered sweetpotato varieties in China. A total of 56 bands were amplified， of which 53 bands were polymorphic， with a polymorphism rate of 94.6%. The average values of polymorphic information content （PIC）， Nei's genetic diversity index （H）， observed heterozygosity （Ho）， and expected heterozygosity （He） are 0.4098， 0.4451， 0.6003 and 0.4460， respectively. Group structure analysis indicates that ΔK reaches maximum at the number of groups K=2， with a small peak at K=4. The northern and Yangtze River sweetpotato zone are evenly distributed within the two groups， while the majority （72.97%） of the southern sweetpotato zone converge in group 2. The principal coordinate analysis （PCoA） shows that there is some convergence in the southern sweetpotato zone， but there is no clear cluster division overall. The clustering results divided the population into four main groups. The varieties in the northern sweetpotato zone and the Yangtze River sweetpotato zone were evenly distributed in groups I， II， III and IV， while the southern sweetpotato zone （77.03%） was mainly concentrated in group IV. This clustering result is basically consistent with population structure research and principal coordinate analysis. Genealogy analysis identified the main parental materials of 13 registered varieties， and there was a situation of repeated use of parents for forward and reverse breeding in each breeding unit. This article combines molecular marker results with pedigree information， preliminarily indicating that the registered varieties of sweetpotatoes in China have close genetic relationships and narrow genetic backgrounds， providing reference for germplasm innovation and new variety selection of sweetpotatoes.

Abstract:In order to strengthen the protection and utilization of Cymbidium resources in China， ISSR markers were deployed to conduct the genetic diversity and fingerprint construction in this study. A total of 67 bands were detected with 11 primers in 96 samples， and the average of polymorphic bands rate is 73.63%， the number of alleles （N_a） is 1.925， the number of effective alleles （N_e） is 1.450， the genetic diversity of Nei's is 0.277， and the Shannon index （I） is 0.427， the percentage of polymorphic loci （PPL） is 92.54%， the genetic diversity within populations （H_s） is 0.1934， the genetic differentiation coefficient （G_st） is 0.3009， the total genetic diversity （H_t） was 0.2767， and the average gene flow among populations（N_m） of Cymbidium is 1.1619， the fixation index of pairwise genetic differentiation among populations ranged from 0.002 to 0.527， with an average of 0.325. The systematic clustering results indicate that Cymbidium has high degree of genetic differentiation， which was divided into three groups by systematic clustering analysis， Cymbidium. goeringii and C. sinense were assigned to one category， while C. kanran， C. goeringii var. longibracteatum， C. faberi， C. tortisepalum and C. ensifolium were in the second category， the hybrids were in a unique category， which has a large genetic distance from the other two categories. Principal coordinate analysis indicated that C. tortisepalum and C. goeringii showed a distant genetic relationship. 6 pairs of primers were selected to construct fingerprint QR codes for 96 species. Collectively， this study provided an important basis for the breeding and variety identification of Cymbidium in the future.

Abstract:Camellia reticulata is a famous ornamental flower in the world， and its flower color is an important ornamental character. The flower color of Camellia reticulata ‘Shizitou’ is deep red， while its bud mutant ‘Damanao’ showing white-red mixed flower is rare with great ornamental value. In this study， both varieties were analyzed at the flower traits by RHSCC colorimetric method， and their metabolites and transcriptional profiles were examined based on transcriptome and metabolome methodologies. Anthocyanin targeted metabolic analysis detected 28 anthocyanin metabolites. There were no different metabolites between the petals of ‘Shizitou’ and ‘Damanao’ in the red region， while the main different metabolites between the white region of the petals of ‘Shizitou’ and ‘Damanao’ were centaurin-3-O-sambudigoside， proanthocyanidin B2， proanthocyanidin B3 and afotoside. The main different metabolites between white and red region of ‘Damanao’ petals were centaurin-3-O-sambuloside， proanthocyanidin B2 and afoside. Transcriptomic KEGG analysis showed that the genes in phenylpropanol biosynthesis and flavonoid biosynthesis pathways were related to the formation of red and white bicolor petals of ‘Damanao’. Plant hormone signal transduction and circadian rhythm-plant pathway were associated with flower color bud change of Camellia reticulata. Transcriptional and metabolic joint analysis identified 17 differentially expressed genes highly related to the color of Camellia reticulata， including 4 CHS， 3 HCT， 2 F3'H， 1 LAR， 5 MYB and 2 bHLH. This study provided a reference for future breeding based on the flower color bud mutation.

Abstract:This study identified a nuclear male sterile pepper line showing male sterility and parthenocarpy characteristics， and the agronomic traits and parthenocarpy fruit setting rate of the material were determined， and the parthenocarpy of the sterile line at different developmental stages and the parthenocarpy of the fertile line were determined for endogenous hormones. In addition， the genetic segregation of F₂ population was analyzed by field identification and microscopic examination， and the fertility segregation ratio of the population was analyzed by using the molecular markers developed by pepper nuclear male sterile genes ms-3， msw， ms， msms and msc-1.The results showed the vertical and horizontal diameters of the parthenocarpy fruit of the sterile line were larger， and the fruit setting rate of the fertile line and the sterile line was significantly different. The fruit setting rate of the fertile line was 22 %， and the fruit setting rate of the sterile line was 43%. The GA4 （gibberellin） content in the parthenocarpic fruit of the sterile line in different periods was significantly higher than that of the fertile line. There are 97 fertile lines and 30 sterile lines in the F2 population，with a separation ratio of 3.23 ： 1，which is consistent with the Mendelian inheritance law. It showsd that its fertility was controlled by a recessive single gene. We named the nuclear male sterile line of pepper as GMS702AB. This study provides a new nuclear male sterile line valuable in pepper breeding and seed production.

Abstract:This study used the derivative line H103P of the wheat line Hussar， which has resistance to leaf rust， as the resistant parent and Zhengzhou 5389 as the susceptible parent to hybridize and obtain 234 F₄ family populations as materials for leaf rust resistance gene mapping analysis. Identification of leaf rust resistance during seedling stage using 16 physiological races of leaf rust fungus with different virulence. The results showed that Zhoumai 22 and vector varieties carrying Lr13， Lr23 and Lr16 single gene were susceptible to 16 physiological races of leaf rust. Except for one race （PHKT）， H103P showed resistance to all other races. The resistance of H103P is different from the vector varieties corresponding to these three genes （Lr13，Lr23 and Lr16）. Use 5 highly virulent mixed strains （THTT， PHTT^②， FHJS^②， PHKS， PHTT^①） for field identification of leaf rust resistance. The results showed that H103P， SAAR， Zhoumai 22 and Lr13 vector variety exhibited high resistance in the field. 234 F₄ family populations are distributed continuously and exhibit good resistance during the mature stage in the field. The results of leaf rust resistance gene mapping analysis indicate that H103P is located as a disease resistance gene on the 2BS chromosome of wheat， temporarily named LrHu. Using specific primers containing Lr13 for specific cleavage of H103P and amplification products of Zhengzhou 5389， it is showed that the wheat leaf rust resistance gene Lr13 is contained in H103P. The relationship between the wheat leaf rust resistance gene LrHu and Lr13 is needed to verify by the further research.

Abstract:WRKY transcription factor is one of the most abundant transcription factors in higher plants， and play an important role in plant growth and development， senescence， abiotic and biological stress. O. granulata （Oryza meyeriana subsp. Granulata）， which serves as a closely related wild species of cultivated rice， represents the characteristics of shade tolerance， drought tolerance and high resistance to bacterial blight， becoming an important germplasm resources for cultivated rice improvement. In this study， using HMMER， Pfam， SMART， TBtools， NCBI software and website， 94 genes encoding WRKY transcription factors （OgWRKYs） were identified in O. granulata， which were unevenly distributed on 12 chromosomes. According to the number of WRKY domains and the characteristics of zinc finger structure， they were divided into groups Ⅰ， Ⅱ， Ⅲ and Ⅳ. Group II had the most members （52）， which was similar to other species. In addition to the conserved WRKYGQK heptaeptides， six variants were identified， among which WRKYGHK， WRRYGQK， WRKYAKK and WRKYSQK were new variants reported for the first time in plants. According to conserved domain analysis， OgWRKY61， OgWRKY71 and OgWRKY77a may be associated with plant disease resistance.KEGG pathway enrichment analysis showed that 14 OgWRKY transcription factors were enriched in plant-pathogen interaction pathways， and 10 of them were simultaneously enriched in MAPK signaling pathways. Further analysis of cis-acting elements suggested that OgWRKY30b， OgWRKY53， OgWRKY88， OgWRKY96 and OgWRKY111 might play important roles in response to biological and abiotic stresses in O. granulata. The results of qRT-PCR analysis showed that the expression of OgWRKY30b， OgWRKY53， OgWRKY88 and OgWRKY111 genes were induced by PXO99， while the expression of OgWRKY96 was inhibited by infection. The results of this study provided important reference for future mining of OgWRKYs genes in O. granulata.

Abstract:To investigate the floral aroma metabolism pathways and differentially expressed genes （DEGs） involved in the biosynthesis of terpenoid aroma compounds in tropical waterlily organs， the transcriptome sequencing was used to analyze the flower organs including the petal （PE）， stamen （ST） and pistil （PI） of N. ‘Paul Stetson’. The number of differentially expressed genes in PE-vs-PI， ST-vs-PI， and ST-vs-PE were 7853， 7501， and 2526， respectively. GO classification and enrichment analysis showed that these DEGs were mainly involved in biological regulation， cellular processes， metabolic processes， and stimulus response biological processes. KEGG annotation revealed abundant pathways with significantly enriched DEGs in PE-vs-PI， followed by ST-vs-PI， and ST-vs-PE. Ninety-eight of 794 DEGs that shared in three comparative groups were enriched in four terpenoid floral aroma synthesis pathways， and DEGs in PE-vs-PI and ST-vs-PI was higher than that in ST-vs-PE. In petals and stamens， the genes responsible for synthesis of acacia aldehyde and diterpenoid kaurene， were expressed at higher levels than in pistils. Six of 98 DEGs were randomly selected and subjected for qRT-PCR analysis， confirming the trend on transcriptional expression as revealed by transcriptome sequencing. The results provided a scientific reference for future deciphering the molecular mechanism of terpenoid aroma compounds biosynthesis in tropical waterlilies.

Abstract:Cistanche salsa （C. A. Mey.） G. Beck is a parasitic herb of the genus Cistanche in the family Orobanchaceae， which has the largest number of host plant species identified. It is a traditional Chinese medicine commonly used in northwest China. To clarify the distribution of C. salsa resources and the identify host plants， 66 samples of C. salsa with parasitic roots were analyzed using DNA barcoding and morphological characters. The results indicated that C. salsa was widely distributed in regions of Xinjiang and Ningxia municipality， at the elevation ranging from 400 to 2000 meters. Specifically， the host plants in Yumin County， Tacheng City， Xinjiang Municipality including Seriphidium compactum （Fisch. ex DC.） Poljakov （Seriphidium genus， Asteraceae） and Atriplex verrucifera Marsch. von Bieb. （Atriplex genus， Amaranthaceae）， the host plants in Tacheng County of Tacheng City including Kalidium cuspidatum Ung.-Sternb. （Kalidium genus， Amaranthaceae）， A. verrucifera and Krascheninnikovia ceratoides （L.） Gueldenst. （Krascheninnikovia genus， Amaranthaceae）， among which A. verrucifera was the dominant host. The host plants in Habahe County， Altay City， Xinjiang Municipality including S. compactum， Krascheninnikovia ewersmanniana （Stschegl. ex Losinsk.） Grubov （Krascheninnikovia genus， Amaranthaceae） and K. ceratoides， the host plants in Jimunai County of Altay City including K. ceratoides and S. compactum. In Yiwu County， Hami City， Xinjiang Municipality， Iljinia regelii （Bunge） Korovin （Iljinia genus， Amaranthaceae） served as the dominant host plant， and the host plants in Barkol County of Hami City including K. cuspidatum. Besides， Suaeda physophora Pall （Suaeda genus， Amaranthaceae） was host plant in the plantation of Jumisar of Changji City in Xinjiang Municipality. Kalidium gracile Fenzl （Kalidium genus， Amaranthaceae） and Sympegma regelii Bunge （Sympegma genus， Amaranthaceae） were both host plants in Yanchi County of Ningxia Wuzhong region， with S. regelii being the dominant host. And S. compactum is a new recorded host plant of C. salsa. Collectively， this study provided scientific basis for protection and breeding of C. salsa and its cultivated host plants in future.

Abstract:Grafting is beneficial in enhancing the adaptability to biotic and abiotic stresses， and improving the yield and quality of grapes. There are varieties of grape rootstocks， while their precise clarification become complex and difficult. Deep learning， capable of rapidly capturing deep features from images， has been extensively applied in the field of plant image classification and recognition. In this study， the mature leaf images of 30 grape rootstocks were deployed to construct a dataset， comprising 13547 grape rootstock leaf images. Four convolutional neural networks， GoogleNet， ResNet-50， ResNet-101 and VGG-16， were used for image recognition. The results show that the classification network with the highest accuracy is ResNet-101， and the accuracy reaches 97.5 % under the optimal model parameters （learning rate：0.005， mini-batch size：32， Max epochs：50）. Among the 30 varieties， the average prediction precision rate was 92.59%， and the prediction precision reaching 100% was observed in seven varieties. The recall rate of eight varieties reached 100%， and the average recall rate was 91.08 %. The leaf surface texture， leaf vein and leaf margin were major factors that influence variety classification. This study confirmed the application capacity of deep learning network models in real-time automatic identification of grape rootstocks， thus providing reference for the protection， utilization， clasification research of grape rootstock varieties and the variety recognition of other crops.