Detection and fine-mapping of SC7 resistance genes via linkage and association analysis in soybean

Soybean mosaic virus (SMV) disease is one of the most serious and broadly distributed soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merr.) diseases. Here, we combine the advantages of association and linkage analysis to identify and fine-map the soybean genes associated with resistance to SMV strain SC7. A set of 191 soybean accessions from different geographic origins and 184 recombinant inbred lines (RILs) derived from Kefeng No.1 (resistant)xNannong 1138-2 (susceptible) were used in this study. The SC7 resistance genes were previously mapped to a 2.65Mb region on chromosome 2 and a 380kb region on chromosome 13. Among 19 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) detected via association analysis in the study, the SNP BARC-021625-04157 was located in the 2.65Mb region, and the SNP BARC-041671-08065 was located near the 380kb region; three genes harboring the SNPs were probably related to SC7 resistance. The resistance gene associated with BARC-021625-04157 was then fine-mapped to a region of approximately 158kb on chromosome 2 using 184 RILs. Among the 15 genes within this region, one NBS-LRR type gene, one HSP40 gene and one serine carboxypeptidase-type gene might be candidate SC7 resistance genes. These results will be useful for map-based cloning and marker-assisted selection in soybean breeding programs.