Drought mitigation in cocoa (Theobroma cacao L.) through developing tolerant hybrids

Area of Science:

• Plant Science
• Agronomy
• Biochemistry

Background:

• Cocoa is a shade-loving crop susceptible to water stress, necessitating drought tolerance breeding due to climate change and crop expansion.
• Biochemical parameters are vital indicators for distinguishing drought-tolerant from susceptible plant varieties.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the role of biochemical parameters in conferring drought tolerance in cocoa hybrids.
• To identify reliable biochemical markers for selecting drought-tolerant cocoa genotypes.

Main Methods:

• Production of cocoa hybrids through crossing four drought-tolerant genotypes.
• Imposition of drought stress and analysis of key biochemical parameters: proline, nitrate reductase activity, superoxide dismutase, and glycine betaine.

Main Results:

• Drought-tolerant hybrids exhibited higher levels of proline, superoxide dismutase, and glycine betaine.
• Contrary to expectations, drought-tolerant hybrids showed increased nitrate reductase activity compared to susceptible ones, though control plants had the highest activity.

Conclusions:

• Proline and nitrate reductase activity play significant roles in drought stress tolerance in cocoa.
• These biochemical markers are effective for identifying superior drought-tolerant genotypes in breeding programs.