Assessment of genetic variation in Deenanath grass (Pennisetum pedicellatum L.) based on morphological trait and...

Deenanath grass is an economically valuable forage crop with a wide range of applications. Crop improvement efforts in this crop had led to the identification, selection, and release of several varieties with desirable traits for yield, drought tolerance, crude protein content, etc. Understanding of genetic variation is a pre-requisite for any crop improvement program. In this study, we examined the genetic variation in 42 local germplasm of Deenanath grass including one check variety using 25 morphological (18 quantitative and 7 qualitative traits) and 17 SSR markers. D ² analysis revealed the presence of significant diversity distributed in six different clusters. Clustering pattern indicated that out of 42 genotypes, 21 belonged to cluster I, 11 genotypes belonged to cluster II, clusters III and IV consisted of 1 genotype each, and clusters IV and V consisted of 4 genotypes each. The highest intra-cluster distance was observed in cluster I (213.16), which is composed of 21 genotypes. The highest inter-cluster distance (445.15) was found between clusters III and VI. The polymorphic information content (PIC) value for markers ranged from 0.38 to 0.79. The molecular similarity coefficients ranged from 0.43 to 0.87, indicating substantial diversity among genotypes. The maximum PIC and Rp value was obtained for marker bnlg2228, RM 22109 and bnlg 1927, which indicated its informativeness and usefulness, and confirms the reliability of these molecular markers to study the genetic variation of Deenanath grass. Population structure analysis categorized the genotypes into two subpopulations, POP1 (wild type) and POP2 (cultivated type). The most closely related cultivars were RDC-4, RDC-27, RDC-20, and RDC-21, with the highest similarity index (0.87). The most distantly related cultivars were RDC-12 and RDC-1, with the lowest similarity index (0.47). Genotypes RDC-20, RDC-21, and RDC-6 are recommended as promising parental material for future breeding programs aimed at enhancing both productivity and adaptability in Deenanath grass.