Vitamin-B profiling and Vit-GWAS in buckwheat (Fagopyrum spp.): a first report

Vitamins are essential for maintaining normal life activities in humans and animals as they depend on external sources for intake of these compounds. Buckwheat a pseudocereal is recognized as a nutrient dense food, offering significant contributions to human health. Vitamin B is regarded as an important nutrient, as its deficiency leads to various symptoms depending on type of vitamin B. Their deficiency usually leads to anaemia, birth defects and other health problems in humans. In this study, we established a protocol for vitamin B profiling of Buckwheat and analysed seed flour of 116 buckwheat core diverse set for nine essential B vitamins using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). These nine vitamins included Thiamine (B1), Riboflavin (B2), Niacin (B3), Nicotinamide (B3), Pantothenic acid (B5), Pyridoxine (B6), Inositol(B8), Folate(B9), and Cobalamin(B12). Significant variations were observed among genotypes for various vitamins. Additionally, genome-wide association studies (GWAS) were performed to identify the significant QTLs / candidate genes associated with the accumulation of these vitamins, providing insights into the genetic architecture underlying their biosynthesis and regulation. A total of 4,142,684 variants were identified from 116 diverse genotypes, containing 3,728,028 SNPs and 414,656 InDels (214,798 insertions and 199,858 deletions). QTLs contributing for these nine vitamins have been identified and mapped on linkage map of Buckwheat. This is the first report of Vit-GWAS in buckwheat and these results will offer new genomic insights that can aid in breeding programs aimed at enhancing the nutritional quality of buckwheat. This research underscores the importance of modern analytical tools and genomic approaches to optimize crop improvement strategies for addressing global nutritional challenges.

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12298-025-01687-y.