The Spatiotemporal Genetic Architecture of Seed Vigor in Upland Cotton

Seed vigor underpins uniform crop establishment, but its dynamic genetics are understudied. Combining high-resolution temporal phenotyping and genomics in upland cotton, we used the SeedRanger platform to record 17 image-based traits every 30 min over 120 h, revealing stage-specific heritability and identifying 541 seed-vigor loci. These loci show extensive pleiotropy and temporal coordination, forming a genetic network that preserves developmental continuity; 8.9% overlap regions under domestication selection, indicating concurrent optimization with fiber yield. Functional validation of FLA2, a candidate gene underlying a dynamic QTL, implicates auxin-mediated control of radicle elongation and cotyledon development. This temporal framework exposes dynamic genetic architecture and breeding targets for high-vigor crops.