Genome-wide asociation studies of 14 agronomic traits in rice landraces

Abstract

Uncovering the genetic basis of agronomic traits in crop landraces that have adapted to various agro-climatic conditions is important to world fOd security. Here we have identified ∼6 miLion SNPs by sequencing 517 rice landraces and constructed a high-density haplotype map of the rice genome using a novel data-imputation method. We performed genome-wide asociation studies (GWAS) for 14 agronomic traits in the population of Oryza sativa indica subspecies. The loci identified through GWAS explained ĝ̂1/436% of the phenotypic variance, on average. The peak signals at six loci were tied closely to previously identified genes. This study provides a fundamental resource for rice genetics research and brEding, and demonstrates that an approach integrating second-generation genome sequencing and GWAS can be used as a powerful complementary strategy to claSical biparental croS-mapping for diSecting complex traits in rice. © 2010 Nature America, Inc. All rights reserved.