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Genomic selection (GS) is a breeding tool, which is rapidly gaining popularity for plant breeding, particularly for traits that are difficult to measure. One such trait is ascochyta blight resistance in pea (Pisum sativum L.), which is difficult to assay because it is strongly influenced by the environment and depends on the natural occurrence of multiple pathogens. Here we report a study of the efficacy of GS for predicting ascochyta blight resistance in pea, as represented by ascochyta blight disease score (ASC), and using nucleotide polymorphism data acquired through genotyping-by-sequencing. The effects on prediction accuracy of different GS models and different thresholds for missing genotypic data (which modified the number of single nucleotide polymorphisms used in the analysis) were compared using cross-validation. Additionally, the inclusion of marker × environment interactions in a genomic best linear unbiased prediction (GBLUP) model was evaluated. Finally, different ways of combining trait data from two field trials using bivariate, spatial, and single-stage analyses were compared to results obtained using a mean value. The best prediction accuracy achieved for ASC was 0.56, obtained using GBLUP analysis with a mean value for ASC and data quality threshold of 70% (i.e., missing SNP data in

Starch phosphorylation is an important aspect of plant metabolism due to its role in starch degradation. Moreover, the degree of phosphorylation of starch determines its physicochemical properties and is therefore relevant for industrial uses of starch. Currently, starch is chemically phosphorylated to increase viscosity and paste stability. Potato cultivars with elevated starch phosphorylation would make this process unnecessary, thereby bestowing economic and environmental benefits. Starch phosphorylation is a complex trait which has been previously shown by antisense gene repression to be influenced by a number of genes including those involved in starch synthesis and degradation. We have used an association mapping approach to discover genetic markers associated with the degree of starch phosphorylation. A diverse collection of 193 potato lines was grown in replicated field trials, and the levels of starch phosphorylation at the C6 and C3 positions of the glucosyl residues were determined by mass spectrometry of hydrolyzed starch from tubers. In addition, the potato lines were genotyped by amplicon sequencing and microsatellite analysis, focusing on candidate genes known to be involved in starch synthesis. As potato is an autotetraploid, genotyping included determination of allele dosage. Significant associations (p < 0.001) were found with SNPs in the glucan water dikinase (GWD), starch branching enzyme I (SBEI) and the starch synthase III (SSIII) genes, and with a SSR allele in the SBEII gene. SNPs in the GWD gene were associated with C6 phosphorylation, whereas polymorphisms in the SBEI and SBEII genes were associated with both C6 and C3 phosphorylation and the SNP in the SSIII gene was associated with C3 phosphorylation. These allelic variants have potential as genetic markers for starch phosphorylation in potato.