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Relevance. Onion (Allium cepa L.) is a valuable and demanded vegetable crop, which occupies one of the leading places in terms of sown areas and gross yields among other vegetable crops of the genus Allium L. Onion is popular in folk and evidence-based medicine, widely used for the prevention and treatment of many diseases due to its rich biochemical composition and useful properties. As part of import substitution and achieving food security of the country, scientists of the Federal State Budgetary Scientific Institution «Federal Scientific Vegetable Center» (FSBSI FSVC) are working intensively to create new generation varieties and hybrids.Methodology. Various resources on the topic were selected, publications in scientific and industry journals and databases were studied, a review of works on onion selection (yield, species diversity in shape and color, maturity, shelf life, biochemical parameters, commercial and seed productivity, resistance to biotic and abiotic stresses), as well as useful properties for humans and use in medicine was made.Results. The analysis of works shows that the wide distribution in the Russian Federation have such varieties of selection of FSBSI FSVC, such as Myachkovskij 300, Cherni prince, Al'ba, Atas, Ampeks and others. In recent years, created a medium-maturing hybrid onion onion F1 Drakon with brown dry scales and a maximum yield of 391.0 c/ha, as well as transferred to the State variety trial winter variety Novator with brown dry scales. Propagation of demanded varieties and hybrids for both production cultivation and for use in household farms is underway.Conclusion. In order to conveyor onion production, it is necessary to create varieties and hybrids of different maturity groups, as well as to work on improving marketability, seed productivity and resistance to various stresses.

The article presents information about the research directions, the results of work and achievements in the selection of onion crops in the Federal State Budgetary Scientific Institution "Federal Scientific Vegetable Center". Brief historical information is given about the work of the outstanding scientists who headed the laboratory – V.V. Ordynsky, A.D. Plinka, I. I. Yershov, A.F. Agafonov. At present, new varieties and hybrids of onion crops of domestic selection that meet all the requirements are required for industrial production.The FSBSI FSVC is working on studying the breeding material of onion crops and identifying promising ones with a complex of economically valuable characteristics for creating fundamentally new, competitive varieties and hybrids for various zones of the Russian Federation. Selection of individual types of bows is carried out: onions – for early maturation, consistently high yield, high dry matter content (17-22%), keeping quality, resistance to peronosporosis, cervical and bacterial rot, with a different rate of reaction to the length of the day, for winter and spring crops, in sowing culture – with a cold method of storing sowing, good keeping quality; perennial onions – winter hardiness, high productivity of green mass, high content of biologically active substances and high resistance to diseases; winter garlic – winter hardiness, yield, resistance to fusarium and bacteriosis, keeping quality during storage; spring garlic – high yield of large cloves, high shelf life; shallots –ultra-fast ripeness, high productivity, keeping quality during storage. The results of the long-term work of the FSVC were 140 varieties of 16 types of onion crops of various uses. Modern varieties of onion for industrial cultivation were created and submitted to the State Variety Testing in 2020: F1 Drakon, AFBAK.

Relevance. It is possible to significantly increase the multiplication factor of varieties of winter garlic by growing from air bulbs (bulbs). For successful culture using air bulbs, it is very important to correctly determine the most productive fraction for each variety and calibrate it for sowing.Material and methodology. In our collection, there are more than 70 samples of winter garlic collected from different regions of Russia and two CIS countries. The air bulbs were calibrated using a set of round sieves with apertures of 3, 5, 7, 10 mm.Results. On average, the samples of the collection have a high percentage of ripening of air bulbs - 75- 83%. The number of underdeveloped flowers on average for samples of different origins varies slightly – 37-48 pcs. in the inflorescence. The mass of inflorescence on average in specimens of local origin (Sverdlovsk region) is 4.2 g, of different origin (Ukraine, Uzbekistan, 5 regions of Russia) – 4.9 g, of southern origin (Dagestan) – 5.6 g. In specimens of local origin air bulbs of medium (5-7 mm) and small fraction (3-5 mm), different origin – large (7-10 mm) and medium fraction, southern origin – large, medium and small fraction. For reproduction by air bulbs, samples 9/5-1. 9/5-2 of local origin were allocated (Sverdlovsk region); 9/4 (Ukraine), 8/15, 10/5, 10/10 (Moscow), 9/3-1, 9/3-2 and grade Shadeyka (Perm); sample-5, 10/11, 10/13 (Dagestan).

Relevance and methods. Losses of agricultural crops are associated not only with the development of diseases during the growing season, but also during post-harvest storage. Garlic is a popular vegetable and aromatic crop in world. Significant losses in garlic yield during cultivation and storage are associated with fungal pathogens, the most harmful of which are representatives of the genus Fusarium. In the Moscow region, the defeat of garlic by Fusarium occurs annually, but with varying intensity. At the Federal Scientific Vegetable Center (FSVC), it was shown that rot and wilting of garlic plants is caused by a complex of pathogenic fungi, including mainly different species of Fusarium. At the same time, the ratio of Fusarium species in the pathogenic complex changes from year to year, new Fusarium species and their races are registered. The aim of this study was to identify fungal phytopathogens causing dry rot of garlic cloves during post-harvest storage. To carry out the work, garlic bulbs of cultivars Dubkovsky and Strelets were taken from the FSVC storage.Results. As a result of visual examination, cloves with symptoms of dry rot were identified. The diseased cloves tissues were plated on potato dextrose agar to obtain fungal colonies. Analysis of the morphological and cultural characteristics of fungal isolates, as well as the nucleotide sequences of four DNA regions (ITS spacers, genes EF1α, RPB1, and RPB2) showed that the causative agent of dry rot of garlic cloves is the pathogenic fungus Fusarium proliferatum. In addition, in the field, identification was carried out based on the analysis of the sequences of spacers ITS and the EF1αgene of phytopathogenic fungi inhabiting the root zone of garlic plants. As a result, two species of fungi of the genus Fusarium (F. proliferatum and F. oxysporum f. sp. cepae), as well as the species Rhizoctonia solani, Volutella rosea, and Ceratobasidium sp. were found in the root zone of garlic cultivars.

Almost all species of Allium L. come from the main center of species diversity of Allium L., which extends from the Mediterranean basin to Central Asia and beyond. Allium species are rich sources of biologically active compounds such as flavonoids, organosulfur compounds and saponins with beneficial effects on human health. Allium's genetic resources in Russia are a potential source of genes for expanding the genetic base of crops. The purpose of the work was to collect information on the diversity of food Allium L., their natural habitat, information on the biochemical composition and biological activity, traditional methods of use in food by different peoples and the prospect of introducing them into the culture. The review focuses on the most characteristic facts and important modern scientific information about representatives of the Allium L. food industry, which may even acquire pharmacological significance in the future. The review included databases such as Google Scholar, PubMed, Science Direct, SciFinder, WoS, RSCI, etc. Other online sources were used (Research Gate, National Center for Biotechnological Information (NCBI), Springer Nature Open Access, Wiley Online Library, etc.). The list of studied Allium species is presented according to the standards adopted in the International Plant Names Index (IPNI) or The Plant List. This study presents the natural habitat of edible onions, provides information on the biochemical composition and biological activity, traditional methods of food use by different peoples and the prospect of introducing them into the culture. For future activities in the field ofgenetic resources, serious efforts must be made to conserve Allium L., as part of the genus is at risk.

The genus Allium L. (Amaryllidaceae), the most numerous among monocotyledonous plants, includes such economically important vegetable crops as onion (A. cepa), garlic (A. sativum) and leek (A. porrum). Leek has a high taste and proven valuable dietary properties and is one of the most popular vegetable crops in Western Europe. Despite a high importance of leek as a vegetable, this species is rarely the subject of molecular genetic studies. The genetic diversity of leeks has never been studied before. Therefore, in this work, we studied the nuclear variability (AFLP) and the chloroplast (nucleotide sequence analysis) genomes using a broad sample. For this work, 65 leek accessions were selected from the collection of the Scientific Center of Vegetable Crops, which included varieties of domestic and foreign breeding. As a result of an AFLP analysis and processing of the DNA spectra obtained, 760 fragments were identified, of which 716 were polymorphic for the leek accessions being analyzed. The calculated genetic distances between the leek samples varied from 0.4 to 0.76, which is comparable to the intraspecific polymorphism of related Allium species (onions, garlic). Analysis of the genomic structure with STRUCTURE 2.3.4 divided the leek samples into seven groups, which generally coincides with the clustering of these samples. To assess the variability of the chloroplast genome, nine sites of the chloroplast genome were sequenced in the leek samples, both non-coding (intergenic spacers rpl32-trnL, ndhJ-trnL, and intron rps16 gene), and protein coding genes (psaA, psaB, psbA, psbB, psbE, petB). The analysis of the sites of the leek chloroplast genome revealed an extremely low level of their polymorphism, only six SNPs were detected in the studied sequences with a total length of about 10,500 bp. Thus, as a result of this work, a high level of polymorphism of the leek nuclear genome was revealed, while the polymorphism of the chloroplast genome was extremely low.

The requirements for garlic powder enriched with selenium, dried by convective drying and homogenized, are established. Selenium-enriched vegetables have special healing properties and are of interest as a source of selenium. Garlic enriched with selenium is grown in a number of countries (including the USA, Sabinsa) and produced in the form of capsules, tablets and granules (BAA), as drugs that can protect against cardiovascular diseases and cancer. The technical conditions of dried garlic with a high content of selenium were studied and identified. Based on these indicators, a standard has been developed «Dried garlic with high content of selenium. Technical conditions». The standard was developed for the first time for the Russian Federation. Sodium selenate was applied to the soil with a total dose of 75 mg / m2 For drying, garlic bulbs in biological ripeness, standard and non-standard, without damage by diseases and pests were used. Cloves were peeled, ground, and dried in a drying cabinet at a temperature of 70°C to constant weight. The resulting material was homogenized, the powder was stored in tightly sealed plastic bags.

Sprouts of agricultural crops seeds are considered to be functional food products with high content of antioxidants. Though seeds of Allium species plants are used in some countries as spices the possibilities of appropriate sprouts utilization have never been investigated so far. Evaluation of perennial and A. cepa seeds biofortification with selenium revealed high nutritional value of the resulting sprouts characterized not only by high selenium content exclusively in a form of selenomethyl selenocysteine (a natural anti carcinogen) but also with high levels of antioxidant activity and high polyphenol content. It was demonstrated that among seven studied representatives of Allium species Allium cepa variety Krasnoye krugevo and perennial onion Allium fistulosum give seeds sprouts with the highest levels of selenium (10500-11000 μg/kg d.w.), polyphenols (9.3-10.8 mg-eq GA/g d.w) and the largest values of antioxidant activity (14.7-17.1 mg-eq GA/g d.w.). Utilization of one g of dried seeds sprouts powder, fortified with selenium provides up to 15.7% of the adequate consumption level of selenium exclusively in a form of selenomethyl selenocysteine possessing powerful anti carcinogenic activity.

One of stressful factors the reducing harvest and quality of bulbs of garlic winter (Allium sativum L.) defeat is diseases of various etiology. Studying of influence of factors of the external environment and stability of a genotype on prevalence of diseases on landings of garlic winter and degree of their injuriousness in the conditions of the Moscow region was the purpose of researches; assessment of collection and selection samples of garlic winter and identification among them steady against the most economically significant diseases. Object of researches were grades and collection samples of garlic of the Federal Scientific Vegetable Center, winter from collections, and other selection institutions. Field experiments and assessment were carried out on a natural infectious background for a number of years. It is as a result established that in the conditions of the Moscow region during vegetation of a plant of garlic winter mainly are surprised mushroom diseases (mycoses) among which the dominating position is taken by fusariosis (micromycetes of the sort Fusarium spp). Defeat of garlic fusariosis is shown annually and with different intensity, depending on weather conditions. The analysis of literature and results of our researches show that number and a ratio of types of Fusarium spp. in a pathogenic complex changes in last years. The types which are earlier not noted on the culture of garlic in the Moscow region (since 2009 – F. avenacium, F. proliferatum, F. subglutinans and F. semitectum are registered; since 2017 – F. gibbosum and F. nivale). In a complex with highly aggressive types of F. solani and F. oxysporum they enhance injuriousness of fuzariosis withering and rots. Mushrooms of the sort Alternaria and other micromycetes of the sorts Stemfillium, Pythium, Embilisia, Verticillum, Cladosporium in the conditions of the Moscow region meet mainly in a complex Fusarium. Gray rot (the activator – Botrytis allii L.) it is more often shown in storage time and transportations of bulbs of garlic. These micromycetes enhance injuriousness of fusariosis and increase losses of a harvest of garlic winter, especially, in the conditions of sharp fluctuations of average daily temperatures and humidity of the soil during the different periods of vegetation. Results of long-term assessment are given in article, grades and perspective collection samples of garlic winter the steadiest against defeat with diseases in the conditions of the changing climate of a zone of Non-Black Earth Region are allocated.

Evaluation of biochemical characteristics of 8 perennial Allium species is achieved (A. ramosum, A. caeruleum, A. erubescens, A. obliquum, A. moly, A. aflatunense, A. oreophilum and A.ursinum). High nutritional significance of separate decorative species is demonstrated. A. caeruleum is shown to be a leader in the accumulation of ascorbic acid (more than 9000 mg/100 g d.w.) and polyphenols (more than 8000 mg GAE/kg d.v.). Detected ascorbic acid concentration range for 8 studies Allium species was 568 (A. ramosum) – 9980 (A. caerulum) mg/100 g d.w.; polyphenols 1392 (A. obliquum) – 8582 (A. caerulum) mg GAE/kg d.w.; water-soluble compounds 28 (A. aflatunense, A. obliguum) – 69 (A. ramosum) mg/kg d.w.; chlorophyll 0.54 (A.oreophilum) – 1.69 (A. ursinum) mg/100 g d.w.; carotene 0.07 (A. oreophilum) – 0.25 (A.ursinum) mg/100 g d.w.; selenium 72 (A. ursinum) – 245 μg/kg d.w., (A. ramosum). Adequate consumption level of vitamin C may be provides by 6.2 g of A.caerulum leaves. Antioxidant activity of Allium species alcoholic extracts composed a range from 1.5 (A. obliquum) to 6.4 (A. ursinum) mg GAE/g d.w. A. ramosum and A. oreophilum demonstrated the highest content of total soluble solids. The highest content of photosynthetic pigments happened to be typical for A. ursinum. The ratio between antioxidant activity of alcoholic and water extracts of Allium leaves was in the range between 0.89 and 2.21 depending on plant species: the highest value was registered in leaves of A. ursinum, the lowest – in leaves of A. ramosum. In a whole the highest content of antioxidants was demonstrated for leaves of A. caerulum. The highest levels of photosynthetic pigments and antioxidant activity of alcoholic extracts were indicated in leaves of A. ursinum.

For the development of functional purpose bakery products broccoli powder or leek powder enriched with selenium were added to wheat flour. Domestic crops such as broccoli (Tonus variety) and leek (Premier variety) were used as plant raw materials. In the process of growing plants technology of enrichment with selenium was used. Developed bakery products containing enriched powders are functional products, satisfying the daily need for selenium from 14% to 32%.

Production of functional food with significant antioxidant and anti-carcinogen activity is considered to be extremely significant in conditions of global ecological crisis. Among Allium species, wild garlic (Allium ursinum L.) along with the ordinary garlic are known to be the leaders in accumulation of natural antioxidants and sulfur-containing compounds with strong anti-carcinogen activity. Taking into consideration that Allium species belong to a group of natural accumulators of selenium, foliar biofortification of wild garlic with sodium selenate was achieved in Gudermes region of the Chechen republic. It was demonstrated that fortification of plants with selenium resulted in significant increase of chlorophyll a and b as well as carotene content, and two-fold increase of both polyphenol concentration and total antioxidant activity. Total dose of 2 mg Na2Se04 per square meter provided 14.4-fold increase of selenium content in A. ursinum leaves. Biofortification of plants with selenium resulted in 1.36, 1.28 and 1.38-fold increase of Cr, Fe and V concentration in leaves compared to leaves of non fortified plants. Leaves of A. ursinum fortified with selenium showed anomalously low Si content compared to non fortified plants. Compared to A. ursinum grown in Moscow region, wild garlic of the Chechen republic accumulated 2-fold lower levels of dry matter and 4.8-fold higher levels of monosaccharides. Compared to non fortified garlic leaves, those of A. ursinum demonstrated significantly higher levels of Cu, Fe, Mg и Zn. The results obtained suggest that A. ursinum fortified with selenium may be considered as a new functional food with strong antioxidant activity.

Winter garlic as a source of vitally necessary macro and microelements is very important in human's diet. Therefore, correlation links among accumulation the basic chemical elements in bulbs of winter garlic were estimated. It was shown that positive reliable relationship (r=0.71-0.85) was discovered between average potassium accumulation and elements, such as magnesium, aluminum and boron, and also between magnesium and boron accumulation, and between aluminum and magnesium. The correlation analysis showed negative relationship between cadmium accumulation with copper (r=-0.71) and silicon (r=- 0.66) accumulations. There is no significant relationship between lead accumulation and other element accumulation. The significant positive correlation was revealed between accumulation of radionuclides 90Sr, 137Cs in garlic bulbs and accumulations of aluminum, calcium, boron and magnesium with coefficients 0.74 and 0.85; 0.70 and 0.78; 0.65 and 0.77; 0.57 and 0.72, respectively. It was shown that accessions more resistant to diseases accumulated less cadmium (r=-0.47), but more lead (r=0.49). Moreover, it was noticed that accessions with high accumulation of potassium had the low percent of well-wintered bulbs (r=-0.57), but more accumulation of Zn and Fe caused the improved hardiness (r=0.80, 0.75, respectively).

Studies were conducted in the Moscow region. The object of research is leek (Allium porrum L.). As a result of carrying out an experiment with ten grades of leek of domestic and foreign selection high-quality reaction on accumulation of radionuclides 137Cs and 90Sr is revealed. It is found out that leek is not the fissile accumulator of accumulation of pollyutant in the conditions of the Central Non-black zone. On the average on ten varieties accumulation 137Cs 13.5 made Bq/kg, at a grade 4. However at the study of high quality standards forms that contained less radionuclides in comparison with others were allocated. On maintenance 90Sr distribution on the groups of accumulation of sorts approaches normal. A group is most representative with the middle level of accumulation of radionuclide 90Sr: from 15.4 to 16.5 Bq/kg. It contains two standards from ten studied forms by the high level of maintenance 90Sr sorts differ Goliath and Kazimir. In the conditions of vegetation of 2016 and 2017 indicators on morphological features are received: number of leaves, plant height, leaves length, leaves width. By us it is defined that the varieties of Giraffes, accumulating 137Cs in less as compared to other standards of varieties, excels substantially all standards of varieties 137Cs on such quantitative sign as a "number of leaves". It should be noted that the analysis of the received results demonstrates that at a high level of accumulation 137Cs of a plant created larger leaves and had higher chance stalk in comparison with plants with low level of accumulation of an element (137Cs).

Ten varieties of winter garlic were tested for ability to accumulate macroand microelements. Genotype dependence was revealed. The most valuable varieties Strelets, Odintsovskiy Yubileyniy, Podnebesniy, Zaokskiy, and Replikant are characterized by high yield and content of macro- and microelements. The varieties Zaokskiy and Strelets are recommended for next breeding program as an initial breeding material.

The results of evaluation of 5 varieties and 16 accessions from the collection of winter garlic (Allium sativum L.) based on the level of accumulation of cesium-137 and strontium-90 in condition of the Moscow region are shown.

Micefit is a product developed based on mycorrhizal fungi extracted from roots of swamp ledum. For ecological purposes the Micefit is used for final stage of cleaning of contaminated and polluted land at seed sowing and seedling plating. The effect of growth regulator Micefit on seeds of garden radish depending on different concentrations and exposures. The dependence of garden radish yield on time of treatment and concentration is shown.

The results of estimation of 2 varieties and 6 collection samples of winter garlic (Allium sativum L.) of resistance to accumulation of plumbum, cadmium, cuprum, and mercuric in condition of the Moscow region are presented. The biochemical content of the studied samples of winter garlic is shown.

The evaluation of aflatunskiy onion for accumulation level of 25 elements was done. It was found that this crop is a source of potassium, calcium, and phosphorus. It is able to accumulate iodine, magnesium, zinc, ferric, silica. The obtained data shows the nutrition value of the genus of Allium L.

The article presents the results of breeding of new variety of winter garlic “Strelets” developed as a result of clonal selection from local sample acquired in the Altai Territory. The variety trial revealed high seed production of this cultivar. The cultivar is characterized by the big air bulbils and other valuable features.