Abstract Detail
Population Genetics/Genomics Goad, David [1]. Genetic and phenotypic diversity in a halophytic grass. Soil salinization is a growing issue worldwide. Due to its negative impact on crop yield there has been an intense focus on breeding more salt tolerant crop varieties. Part of this effort has been to understand the physiological and genetic mechanisms by which salt tolerant plants (halophytes) have adapted to saline environments. A rising halophytic model system is seashore paspalum (Paspalum vaginatum Sw.) an incredibly salt tolerant grass that has found a use as a turfgrass in salt affected areas. Its manageably sized diploid genome has allowed it to become the first halophytic grass to receive a reference genome. Draft assemblies of which are currently available. Despite the recent interest in it as a genomic model system little is known about genetic and phenotypic diversity in wild (i.e. non-turfgrass) population of the species. We gathered the largest wild collection of P. vaginatum to date. We assayed their salt tolerance ability using high-throughput ionomics and genotyped them with genome-wide SNP markers. This revealed a surprising history of hybridization and ploidy variation that are associated with salt tolerance phenotypes. These results highlight the importance of sample choice when designing experiments and raise new questions about the basis for salt tolerance in this species.
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1 - Washington University, Biology, 1 Brookings Drive, Campus Box 1137, St. Louis, MO, 63130, US
Keywords:
halophyte
Hybridization
salt stress
ionomics
population genomics.
Presentation Type: Poster
Session: P, Population Genetics/Genomics
Location: Grand Ballroom - Exhibit Hall/Mayo Civic Center
Date: Monday, July 23rd, 2018
Time: 5:30 PM This poster will be presented at 5:30 pm. The Poster Session runs from 5:30 pm to 7:00 pm. Posters with odd poster numbers are presented at 5:30 pm, and posters with even poster numbers are presented at 6:15 pm.
Number: PPG011
Abstract ID:904
Candidate for Awards:Genetics Section Poster Award | 
