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[EN] The architecture of the inflorescence, the shoot system that bears the flowers, is a main component of the huge diversity of forms found in flowering plants. Inflorescence architecture has also a strong impact on the production of fruits and seeds, and on crop management, two highly relevant agronomical traits. Elucidating the genetic networks that control inflorescence development, and how they vary between different species, is essential to understanding the evolution of plant form and to being able to breed key architectural traits in crop species. Inflorescence architecture depends on the identity and activity of the meristems in the inflorescence apex, which determines when flowers are formed, how many are produced and their relative position in the inflorescence axis. Arabidopsis thaliana, where the genetic control of inflorescence development is best known, has a simple inflorescence, where the primary inflorescence meristem directly produces the flowers, which are thus borne in the main inflorescence axis. In contrast, legumes represent a more complex inflorescence type, the compound inflorescence, where flowers are not directly borne in the main inflorescence axis but, instead, they are formed by secondary or higher order inflorescence meristems. Studies in model legumes such as pea (Pisum sativum) or Medicago truncatula have led to a rather good knowledge of the genetic control of the development of the legume compound inflorescence. In addition, the increasing availability of genetic and genomic tools for legumes is allowing to rapidly extending this knowledge to other grain legume crops. This review aims to describe the current knowledge of the genetic network controlling inflorescence development in legumes. It also discusses how the combination of this knowledge with the use of emerging genomic tools and resources may allow rapid advances in the breeding of grain legume crops.

El garbanzo es la segunda leguminosa grano más cultivada en el mundo. Hasta la fecha, se han llevado a cabo programas de mejora para desarrollar variedades competitivas, pero se requieren nuevas estrategias y herramientas, que faciliten avanzar en la mejora de un modo más eficiente. La disponibilidad de poblaciones de líneas recombinantes y líneas casi isogénicas ha permitido posicionar genes y QTLs (Quantitative Trait Loci) de interés en el genoma de garbanzo. La combinación de la información de los mapas genéticos junto con la secuenciación del genoma del garbanzo supone una poderosa herramienta para detectar nuevos marcadores asociados a caracteres de interés agronómico. En nuestro grupo se ha empleado esta estrategia con el fin de identificar genes candidatos o marcadores diagnóstico para resistencia a enfermedades y caracteres adaptativos, siguiendo el siguiente esquema: - Identificación de marcadores asociados a caracter es de interés agronómico en el mapa genético. - Empleo de la secuencia completa del genoma para determinar la posición en el mapa físico de los marcadores seleccionados. - Diseño de nuevos marcadores para hacer mapeo fino en la región de interés basándonos en la secuencia del genoma. - Genotipado de estos marcadores en las líneas parentales de nuestras poblaciones segregantes para detectar polimorfismos. En el caso de obtener marcadores monomórficos no se puede continuar. Si disponemos de marcadores polimórficos se evalúan en todos los individuos de las poblaciones con el fin de realizar nuevos estudios de ligamiento. - Este proceso nos permite acotar la región de interés y seleccionar un número reducido de genes candidatos. Un ejemplo, sería el desarrollo de marcadores asociados a resistencia a fusarium causada por Fusarium oxysporum La resistencia a las distintas razas de este patógeno tiene un control oligogénico y se ha descrito un agrupamiento de genes de resistencia a esta enfermedad en el GL2 del mapa genético de garbanzo. Siguiendo est

A recombinant inbred line population (RIP-9) derived from an interspecific cross (ILC72 × Cr5-10) was evaluated for growth habit during 2 years (2003 and 2004). This RIP was used to develop a pair of near isogenic lines (NILs) for erect vs prostrate growth habit in chickpea. Molecular characterization of the identified pair of NILs was performed using 52 sequence tagged microsatellite site markers distributed over different chickpea linkage groups (CaLG) of the genetic map. It revealed polymorphic markers in CaLG1 and CaLG3. Starting from a previous data base simple linear regression was applied to detect association between markers and growth habit. The RAPD (random amplified polymorphic DNA) marker OPAD091053 mapped on CaLG1 explained the highest percentage (maximum 15.4 %) of the total phenotypic variation for growth habit and it was used to develop a SCAR (sequence characterized amplified region) marker (SCAD091053). New markers were developed from sequences surrounding SCAD091053 in the physical map. QTL (quantitative trait loci) analysis revealed a new QTL (QTLHg2) in CaLG1. The Indel marker (deletion/insertion) Indel 3 and the predicted gene Ca_07000 (14,5 Mb of Ca1) and (15,3 Mb of Ca1) had the highest LOD values explaining 24.6 and 23.4 % of the phenotypic variation in years 2003 and 2004, respectively. To confirm these results, another RIP (RIP-5) derived from an intraspecific cross (WR315 × ILC3279) and segregating for erect vs semi-erect growth habit was employed. RIP-5 allowed mapping the gene (Hg2/hg2) on CaLG1 that was flnaked by two Indel markers (Indel 1 and Indel 2) in the range of 12,3 and 16,2 Mb. So, Hg2/hg2 gene corresponds to QTLHg2 region. The annotated genes Ca_07000 and Ca_06999 were homologues to predicted zinc finger genes in Glycine max and Pisum sativum, respectively. Hence, they could be considered as possible candidate genes.

The architecture of the inflorescence, the shoot system that bears the flowers, is a main component of the huge diversity of forms found in flowering plants. Inflorescence architecture has also a strong impact on the production of fruits and seeds, and on crop management, two highly relevant agronomical traits. Elucidating the genetic networks that control inflorescence development, and how they vary between different species, is essential to understanding the evolution of plant form and to being able to breed key architectural traits in crop species. Inflorescence architecture depends on the identity and activity of the meristems in the inflorescence apex, which determines when flowers are formed, how many are produced and their relative position in the inflorescence axis. Arabidopsis thaliana, where the genetic control of inflorescence development is best known, has a simple inflorescence, where the primary inflorescence meristem directly produces the flowers, which are thus borne in the main inflorescence axis. In contrast, legumes represent a more complex inflorescence type, the compound inflorescence, where flowers are not directly borne in the main inflorescence axis but, instead, they are formed by secondary or higher order inflorescence meristems. Studies in model legumes such as pea (Pisum sativum) or Medicago truncatula have led to a rather good knowledge of the genetic control of the development of the legume compound inflorescence. In addition, the increasing availability of genetic and genomic tools for legumes is allowing to rapidly extending this knowledge to other grain legume crops. This review aims to describe the current knowledge of the genetic network controlling inflorescence development in legumes. It also discusses how the combination of this knowledge with the use of emerging genomic tools and resources may allow rapid advances in the breeding of grain legume crops.

An intraspecific cross between the mutant non-nodulating genotype PM233, carrying the recessive gene rn1, and the wild-type CA2139 was used to develop two pairs of near-isogenic lines (NILs) for nodulation in chickpea. These pairs of NILs were characterized using sequence tagged microsatellite site (STMS) markers distributed across different linkage groups (LGs) of the chickpea genetic map leading to the detection of polymorphic markers located in LG5. Using this information, together with the genome annotation in Medicago truncatula, a candidate gene (NSP2) known to be involved in nodulation pathway was selected for mapping in chickpea. The full length sequence obtained in chickpea wild-type (CaNSP2) was 1,503 bp. Linkage analysis in an F3 population of 118 plants derived from the cross between the pair of NILS NIL7-2A (nod) × NIL7-2B (non-nod) revealed a co-localization between CaNSP2 and Rn1 gene. These data implicate the CaNSP2 gene as a candidate for identity to Rn1, and suggest that it could act in the nodulation signaling transduction pathway similarly to that in other legumes species.