{
  "abstract": "Background\n\nSphenostylis stenocarpa (African yam bean, AYB) is an important nutritious but neglected leguminous crop with dual benefits of edible seeds and tubers. Despite its importance, limited information exists on integrating phenotypic and molecular diversity for effective breeding and conservation. Therefore, the current study investigated the genetic diversity of 25 accessions and landraces of AYB using 24 phenotypic traits and 8 Simple Sequence Repeat (SSR) primers derived from Vigna mungo.Results\n\nThe results revealed highly significant variability for key traits, including plant height, number of leaves, days to flowering and maturity, and pod and seed metrics among the AYB germplasm. Seed width was positively and strongly correlated with seed thickness (r = 0.95), seed length (r = 0.93), and seed set (r = 0.80). Broad-sense heritability estimates coupled with genetic advance were high for seven growth traits and pod and seed metrics, suggesting high additive gene action. The mean values of genetic diversity (0.37) and Shannon's information index (0.53) highlight a moderate degree of genetic diversity. The Polymorphic Information Content (PIC) ranged from 0.19 to 0.37, with primers CEDG010 and CEDG284 having the highest PIC (0.37), indicating moderate informativeness of primers. The Mantel test showed no significant correlation (r = 0.027) between phenotypic traits and genetic distance. Integrated cluster analysis grouped the accessions and landraces into three distinct genetical and agronomical clusters, providing a robust basis for selection and hybridization.Conclusion\n\nThe findings provide valuable baseline information for conservation, parental selection, and future breeding programs aimed at genetic improvement of AYB for sustainable food security in sub-Saharan Africa.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "Plant Genetics and Molecular Biology Unit, Department of Botany, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria. davidseun2015@gmail.com.",
    "ICAR-National Institute for Plant Biotechnology, Pusa Campus, New Delhi, 110012, India. davidseun2015@gmail.com.",
    "ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, Pusa Campus, 110012, New Delhi, India. davidseun2015@gmail.com.",
    "Plant Genetics and Molecular Biology Unit, Department of Botany, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria. olawuyiodunayo@yahoo.com.",
    "ICAR-National Institute for Plant Biotechnology, Pusa Campus, New Delhi, 110012, India.",
    "ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, Pusa Campus, 110012, New Delhi, India."
  ],
  "article_type": "research article",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 3,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1,
        2
      ],
      "name": "Seun Cecilia Joshua",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-6574-222X"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        3
      ],
      "name": "Odunayo Joseph Olawuyi",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-0331-633X"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        4,
        5
      ],
      "name": "Amitha Cr Mithra Sevanthi",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-8447-9148"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/a27bv0vfshf12.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.1186/s12870-026-09697-y",
  "fulltext_url": "https://europepmc.org/articles/PMC13729288",
  "id": "a27bv0vfshf12",
  "issns": [
    "1471-2229"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42972543",
  "language": "eng",
  "licence": "CC-BY-NC-ND",
  "licence_label": "CC BY-NC-ND",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "heading",
      "Research"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "1110|Agricultural pest management studies"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7196958969",
  "pdf_url": "https://europepmc.org/articles/PMC13729288?pdf=render",
  "pmcid": "PMC13729288",
  "pmid": "42972543",
  "published": "2026-08-06",
  "publisher": "BMC",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/a27bv0vfshf12.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-11-04T15:20:44Z",
      "native_id": "MED:42972543",
      "source": "europepmc",
      "url": "https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42972543"
    },
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-11-07T12:22:04Z",
      "native_id": "PMC13729288",
      "source": "pmc",
      "url": "https://doi.org/10.1186/s12870-026-09697-y"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "biology",
      "origin": "openalex:1110|Agricultural pest management studies",
      "subfield": "plant-biology"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Phenotypic and molecular characterization of accessions and landraces of Sphenostylis stenocarpa (Hochst. ex A. Rich) Harms (African yam bean).",
  "title_text": "Phenotypic and molecular characterization of accessions and landraces of Sphenostylis stenocarpa (Hochst. ex A. Rich) Harms (African yam bean).",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-11-07T12:22:04Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/a27bv0vfshf12",
  "venue": "BMC plant biology",
  "versions": []
}