Advances in sesame (Sesamum indicum L.) breeding

Abstract

Sesame is a high value and important oilseed crop owing to its dietary uses, health benefits and industrial applications. Sesame oil maintains a balanced fatty acid composition with more or less equal and higher percentages of unsaturated fatty acids. In spite of its several merits, it is behind in genetic improvement as compared to other commercial oilseed crops. Narrow genetic base, less attention to genetic improvement and cultivation in marginal lands with poor management practices are the major constraints for increased yield potential. Sesame has ample scope to breed cultivars with greater yield, as the gap between the potential and realized yields in this crop is enormous. Capsule shattering leads to heavy loss of seed yield and the crop is sensitive to a wide array of biotic and abiotic stresses. Innovative breeding approaches such as mutagenesis, somaclonal variation, interspecific hybridization, somatic hybridization and genetic transformation can be used to restructure the plant's ideotype. In addition, identification of candidate genes/quantitative trait loci (QTL) and their monitoring in succeeding breeding cycles using molecular markers can pave the way for genetic improvement in sesame. In this pursuit, the authors present a detailed outline of the importance of sesame as a potential oilseed crop, its biosystematics, floral biology, genomics, breeding goals, present status of breeding strategies and attention to prospects for sustainable production and productivity in future.