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B Mangin

Publications and source records attributed to B Mangin.

9 recordsLinked to original sources

Connected populations for detecting quantitative trait loci and testing for epistasis: an application in maize.

Quantitative trait loci (QTL) detection experiments have often been restricted to large biallelic populations. Use of connected multiparental crosses has been proposed to increase the genetic variability addressed and to test for epistatic interactions between QTL and the genetic background. We present here the results of a QTL detection performed on six connected F(2) populations of 150 F(2:3) families each, derived from four maize inbreds and evaluated for three traits of agronomic interest. The QTL detection was carried out by composite interval mapping on each population separately, then on the global design either by taking into account the connections between populations or not. Epistatic interactions between loci and with the genetic background were tested. Taking into account the connections between populations increased the number of QTL detected and the accuracy of QTL position estimates. We detected many epistatic interactions, particularly for grain yield QTL (R(2) increase of 9.6%). Use of connections for the QTL detection also allowed a global ranking of alleles at each QTL. Allelic relationships and epistasis both contribute to the lack of consistency for QTL positions observed among populations, in addition to the limited power of the tests. The potential benefit of assembling favorable alleles by marker-assisted selection are discussed.

Epistasis, Genetic↗

Nod genes and Nod signals and the evolution of the Rhizobium legume symbiosis.

The establishment of the nitrogen-fixing symbiosis between rhizobia and legumes requires an exchange of signals between the two partners. In response to flavonoids excreted by the host plant, rhizobia synthesize Nod factors (NFs) which elicit, at very low concentrations and in a specific manner, various symbiotic responses on the roots of the legume hosts. NFs from several rhizobial species have been characterized. They all are lipo-chitooligosaccharides, consisting of a backbone of generally four or five glucosamine residues N-acylated at the non-reducing end, and carrying various O-substituents. The N-acyl chain and the other substituents are important determinants of the rhizobial host specificity. A number of nodulation genes which specify the synthesis of NFs have been identified. All rhizobia, in spite of their diversity, possess conserved nodABC genes responsible for the synthesis of the N-acylated oligosaccharide core of NFs, which suggests that these genes are of a monophyletic origin. Other genes, the host specific nod genes, specify the substitutions of NFs. The central role of NFs and nod genes in the Rhizobium-legume symbiosis suggests that these factors could be used as molecular markers to study the evolution of this symbiosis. We have studied a number of NFs which are N-acylated by alpha,beta-unsaturated fatty acids. We found that the ability to synthesize such NFs does not correlate with taxonomic position of the rhizobia. However, all rhizobia that produce NFs such nodulate plants belonging to related tribes of legumes, the Trifolieae, Vicieae, and Galegeae, all of them being members of the so-called galegoid group. This suggests that the ability to recognize the NFs with alpha-beta-unsaturated fatty acids is limited to this group of legumes, and thus might have appeared only once in the course of legume evolution, in the galegoid phylum.

Biological Evolution↗

Resistance of tomato line Hawaii7996 to Ralstonia solanacearum Pss4 in Taiwan is controlled mainly by a major strain-specific locus.

Bacterial wilt caused by the soilborne bacterium Ralstonia solanacearum attacks hundreds of plant species, including many agriculturally important crops. Natural resistance to this disease has been found in some species and is usually inherited as a polygenic trait. In tomato, a model crop plant, genetic analysis previously revealed the involvement of several QTL (quantitative trait loci) controlling resistance and, in all of these studies with different strains of the pathogen, loci on chromosome 6 played the predominant role in controlling this trait. Using quantitative data collected from a greenhouse test F3 population, we identified a new locus on chromosome 12 that appears to be active specifically against a race 1 biovar 3 Pss4 bacterial strain endemic to Taiwan. Chromosome 6 still contributes significantly to the control of the resistance, and weaker associations of the trait to other regions of the genome are observed. These results are discussed in the context of current molecular knowledge about the strain specificity of disease resistance genes.

Chromosome Mapping↗

Temporal and multiple quantitative trait loci analyses of resistance to bacterial wilt in tomato permit the resolution of linked loci.

Ralstonia solanacearum is a soil-borne bacterium that causes the serious disease known as bacterial wilt in many plant species. In tomato, several QTL controlling resistance have been found, but in different studies, markers spanning a large region of chromosome 6 showed strong association with the resistance. By using two different approaches to analyze the data from a field test F3 population, we show that at least two separate loci approximately 30 cM apart on this chromosome are most likely involved in the resistance. First, a temporal analysis of the progression of symptoms reveals a distal locus early in the development of the disease. As the disease progresses, the maximum LOD peak observed shifts toward the proximal end of the chromosome, obscuring the distal locus. Second, although classical interval mapping could only detect the presence of one locus, a statistical "two-QTL model" test, specifically adapted for the resolution of linked QTL, strongly supported the hypothesis for the presence of two loci. These results are discussed in the context of current molecular knowledge about disease resistance genes on chromosome 6 and observations made by tomato breeders during the production of bacterial wilt-resistant varieties.

Bacterial Infections↗

A composite genetic map of the parasitoid wasp Trichogramma brassicae based on RAPD markers.

Three linkage maps of the genome of the microhymenopteran Trichogramma brassicae were constructed from the analysis of segregation of random amplified polymorphic DNA markers in three F2 populations. These populations were composed of the haploid male progeny of several virgin F1 females, which resulted from the breeding of four parental lines that were nearly fixed for different random amplified polymorphic DNA markers and that were polymorphic for longevity and fecundity characters. As the order of markers common to the three mapping populations was found to be well conserved, a composite linkage map was constructed. Eighty-four markers were organized into five linkage groups and two pairs. The mean interval between two markers was 17.7 cM, and the map spanned 1330 cM.

Animals↗

Comparing power of different methods for QTL detection.

We compared the powers of two methods for detection of quantitative trait loci (QTL) using genetic markers, in the simple case of an interval between two codominant markers and a backcross population. The first method is the interval mapping approach, based on the use of likelihood ratio tests performed in many positions within the interval considered and the second is the classical analysis of variance (ANOVA) testing only on the positions of the two markers. For both approaches we took into account the correlation between tests performed at different markers or positions in the interval. Appropriate thresholds and powers of tests were then calculated using analytical formulations. Simulations were also done to check the validity of the approximations used to calculate the power of the interval mapping test. Results show that the interval mapping test is slightly more powerful (about 5%) than ANOVA for small intervals (less than 20 cM) and that, for quite large effects of the QTL, the advantage of interval mapping increases as the distance between markers increases. It is more than 30% for intervals of about 70 cM.

Analysis of Variance↗

Approximate thresholds of interval mapping tests for QTL detection.

A general method is proposed for calculating approximate thresholds of interval mapping tests for quantitative trait loci (QTL) detection. Simulation results show that this method, when applied to backcross and F2 populations, gives good approximations and is useful for any situation. Programs which calculate these thresholds for backcross, recombinant inbreds and F2 for any given level and any chromosome with any given distribution of codominant markers were written in Fortran 77 and are available under request. The approach presented here could be used to obtain, after suitable calculations, thresholds for most segregating populations used in QTL mapping experiments.

Biometry↗

Constructing confidence intervals for QTL location.

We describe a method for constructing the confidence interval of the QTL location parameter. This method is developed in the local asymptotic framework, leading to a linear model at each position of the putative QTL. The idea is to construct a likelihood ratio test, using statistics whose asymptotic distribution does not depend on the nuisance parameters and in particular on the effect of the QTL. We show theoretical properties of the confidence interval built with this test, and compare it with the classical confidence interval using simulations. We show in particular, that our confidence interval has the correct probability of containing the true map location of the QTL, for almost all QTLs, whereas the classical confidence interval can be very biased for QTLs having small effect.

Chromosome Mapping↗