Enhancing nutritional quality and productivity,Increased resistance to insects (flower thrips) and diseases (Sigatoka and nematodes),Enhancing resistance to Striga hermonthica through introgression of genes from wild species and landraces,Enhancing drought tolerance in cowpea

1. Utilization of wild species and cultivated
landrace for enhancing productivity and other
attributes of staple food crops

2. Utilization of wild species and landraces
Drivers of utilization of wild species and landraces
 Breeding objectives
 Changing productivity and architecture of a crop
 Production constraints encountered
 End use quality attributes
 Lack of sufficient genetic variation in existing adapted germplasm to
breed for a particular trait
Research emphasis
 Enhancing nutritional and end-use quality
 Increasing resistance to insects, diseases and parasitic plants
 Improving tolerance to drought and other desirable traits

3. 1.1. Enhancing nutritional quality
Top ten cassava progenies selected
in 2006/2007 for high protein content
determined on a dry weight basis
Highlights of achievements
2006/2007
Cassava Protein
Progeny content
 True seeds of wild Manihot species, (%)
M. tristis and M. flavellifolia, with 06/2335-1 28
06/1847-9 25
high protein content received from 06/1691-1 23
CIAT 06/2088-3 21
06/2086-2 20
06/2327-35 20
06/2249-4 20
 Crossed to locally adapted 06/2098-3 19
germplasm for three generations 06/2290-3 19
06/2293-12 18
and storage roots obtained from Minimum 3
several progenies were analyzed for N 194
Mean 10
protein content se 0.3
Min 2.7

4. 1.2. Enhancing nutritional quality
400
No. of genotypes
300
Fe
Baseline
200
100
0
Highlights of achievements
.9 .9 .9 2-14.9 5-26.8
2.9-5 6.0-8 9.0-11 1 1
Cassava Fe concentration (mg/kg)
 A total of 663 landraces including 300
Baseline
checks were screened for iron (Fe) 250 Zn
No. of genotypes
and zinc (Zn) concentration in 200
150
2007
100
50
0
.9 .9 1.9 .9 .5
4.5-5 6.0-8 9.0-1 12-14 15-22
Zn concentration (mg/kg)

5. 1.3. Enhancing nutritional quality and productivity
Highlights of achievements
Yam
 Inter-specific crosses have been made to incorporate genes from D.
cayenensis to D. rotundata
 Increase pro-vitamin A content
 Increase leaf area duration to allow multiple harvests in D. rotundata
Pollinated
Female Male flowers Fruit Set Seed Set
Number No. % No. %
D. rotundata D. rotundata 2491 965 38.7 3313 22.2
D. rotundata D. cayenensis 1581 154 9.7 9 0.1
D. rotundata D. alata 1663 6 0.4 9 0.1

6. 1.3. Enhancing nutritional quality and productivity
Highlights of achievements
Yam
● Examination of progenies generated from inter-specific crosses using an
isozyme marker confirmed true hybrids
- - a b
+
+
TDr 95/19158 F1 TDc 98-136
TDr 95/18544 F1 TDc 98-136
- c -
C d
+ +
TDr 85/18555 TDc 95-165 TDr 89/02475 TDc 98-136
F1 F1

7. 2.1 Increased resistance to insects (flower thrips)
Highlights of achievements
Susceptible
Cowpeas
 Two cowpea RI lines derived from
two crosses
 Thrips tolerant landrace from
Ghana and a susceptible line
from IITA
 Another thrips tolerant landrace
and a susceptible line from IITA Tolerant
 The RI lines were evaluated in the
field under high population pressure
of flower bud thrips

8. 2.1 Increased resistance to insects (flower thrips)
8.0 8.0 THB
THA
7.0 7.0
6.0 6.0
Thrips score
Thrips score
5.0 5.0
4.0 4.0
3.0 3.0
2.0 y = -0.0578x + 6.7385 2.0 y = -0.0595x + 6.8278
R2 = 0.642 R2 = 0.7323
1.0 1.0
0.0 0.0
0 10 20 30 40 50 0 10 20 30 40
No of pods No of pods
Figures. Relationship between thrips damage scores and number of pods per plant
among a set of RILs (THA) from the cross Sanzi x VITA 7

9. 2.2 Increased resistancemapping populations and nematodes)
Development of to diseases (Sigatoka
Highlights of achievements
Banana and Plantain
 Wild musa species used as sources of genes
for
 Resistance to disease
(Sigatoka/Nematodes)
Musa acuminata (Calcutta 4) selfed
 Reduced plant height
 Parthenocarpy
 Earliness
 Suckering behavior/Apical dominance
 In landraces with preferred end-use quality
traits

10. Identification of bananas based on finger size, color, shape and number

11. 2.2. Enhancing resistance to Striga hermonthica through
introgression of genes from wild species
Highlights of achievements
Maize
 We received 3 wild accessions from
CIMMYT and evaluated them in pots
 The wild accessions supported fewer
emerged Striga plants than a
susceptible check
 These wild accessions were crossed to
different maize inbred lines to transfer
desirable genes for resistance to Striga

12. 2.2. Enhancing resistance to Striga hermonthica through
introgression of genes from landraces
Performance of extra-early varieties derived from local and exotic germplasm
under Striga-infested and Striga-free conditions at 5 locations in 2006 and at 3
locations in 2007 in WCA
Striga Striga
Plant damage emergence
Variety Grain yield, height rating count
Non- Infested 10WAP 10WAP
Infested infested
Kg ha-1 cm (1-9) (1-9)
TZEE-W Pop x LD (set A2) 1990 2479 141 3.9 84
2004 TZEE-W Pop STR C4 1943 2815 140 4.7 102
99 TZEE-Y STR 1599 2248 123 5.3 96
TZEE-W SR BC5 (REFC) 1260 1797 117 5.8 111
Grand mean 1624 2402 135 4.7 106
LSD (0.05) 258 335 7 0.5 33

13. 2.2. Enhancing resistance to Striga hermonthica through
introgression of genes from landraces
Performance of early varieties derived from local and exotic germplasm under Striga-
infested and Striga-free conditions at Abuja, Mokwa and Angaredebou in 2006 and 2007
Striga Striga
Plant damage emergence
Variety Grain yield height rating count
Non- Infested
Infested infested 10WAP 10 WAP
Kg ha-1 cm (1-9) (1-9)
2004 TZE-W Pop DT STR C4 2084 3038 136 3.8 111
TZE-Y Pop DT STR C4 1921 3025 138 4.0 94
TZE-W Pop DT STR C4 1842 3171 132 4.0 142
2004 TZE-Y Pop DT STR C4 1838 3126 141 3.8 93
TZE COMP 4 (SUSC) 1073 2671 121 5.6 115
Grand mean 1606 2686 130 4.3 103
LSD (0.05) 343 421 8 0.5 29

14. 3. Enhancing drought tolerance in cowpea
Highlights of achievements
Cowpeas
 1000 landrace accessions of
cowpea were evaluated for drought
tolerance during the 2007/08 dry
season by suspending irrigation five
weeks after planting
 A few lines have been selected for
further evaluation under drought
and eventual use as parents in
crosses to develop drought tolerant
varieties
Tolerant Susceptible

15. 3. Enhancing drought tolerance by incorporating
drought tolerance alleles from landraces
Highlights of achievements
Maize
Performance of OP varieties derived from backcrosses involving landraces as non-recurrent
parents tested at Ikenne under sufficient water supply and controlled drought stress in 2007
Leaf Anthesis
Days to death Ears per -silking Yield (kg/ha)
anthesis score plant interval under
non- Drought
Populations (day) (1-10) (No.) (days) stress stress
ACR91SUWAN1-SR*2/DIASSAGA-1 55 5.8 1.0 1.5 5546 1832
ACR91SUWAN1-SR*2/SAMOROGOUAN-5 55 4.3 0.8 2.5 5074 1759
ACR91SUWAN1-SR*2/BONDOKUY-1 55 5.5 0.8 1.8 5582 1389
ACR91SUWAN1-SR 58 5.8 0.6 4.5 6710 698
Oba Super II 58 6.0 0.7 4.8 6701 1099
Oba Super I 58 6.5 0.7 5.3 6302 1016
Mean 57 5.6 0.7 4.0 5798 1190
S.E. 1.4 0.69 0.14 1.5 569 374
CV 2 15 15 44 13 31
Populations *** * *** ** * **

16. Summery
 Wild species and landraces have been used for creation and supplying
of new genetic materials to the NARS partners
 Such new genetic materials can contribute to sustained improvement of
 Yield potential
 Resistance to biotic and abiotic stresses
 Nutritional quality