Biotechnology for cotton improvement

Abstract

Cotton is a natural fiber crop in the world. The ever-increasing demands of the fast-growing population for food, feed, fiber, and fuel, which is estimated to be 11 billion all over the world in 2050, urge to enhance food production 2-3 times. But limitations in conventional breeding program for genetic upgrading are due to limited knowledge about yield and fiber traits. Use of molecular markers and exploitation of DNA polymorphism is one of the noteworthy developments in the field of molecular genetics. Availability of reference genome of G. raimondii L., G. arboreum L., and next-generation sequencing routed it on fast track for exploring variability among genotypes of cotton. Genomic research could be quantitative trait loci mapping, genome-wide associations, and next-generation sequencing approaches.