Breeding for boron tolerance in lentil (Lens culinaris Medik.) using a high-throughput phenotypic assay and molecular markers

This study describes the identification of a quantitative trait locus (QTL) in the recombinant inbred line population of ILL2024xILL6788 and subsequent validation of associated molecular markers. A high-quality genetic linkage map was constructed with 758 markers that cover 1,057cM, with an average intermarker distance of 2cM. QTL analysis revealed a single genomic region on Lc2 to be associated with B tolerance and accounted for up to 76% of phenotypic variation (Vp). The best markers for B tolerance were assessed for their utility in routine breeding applications using validation panels of diverse lentil germplasm and breeding material derived from ILL2024. A marker generated from the dense genetic map of this study was found to be the most accurate of all markers available for B tolerance in lentil, with a success rate of 93% within a large breeding pool derived from ILL2024. However, given the number of the unrelated lines for which the marker-trait association was not conserved, B tolerance screening is still required at later stages to confirm predicted phenotypes.