Phenotypic and molecular characterization of accessions and landraces of Sphenostylis stenocarpa (Hochst. ex A. Rich) Harms (African yam bean).
6 affiliations
- 1Plant Genetics and Molecular Biology Unit, Department of Botany, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria. [email protected].
- 2ICAR-National Institute for Plant Biotechnology, Pusa Campus, New Delhi, 110012, India. [email protected].
- 3ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, Pusa Campus, 110012, New Delhi, India. [email protected].
- 4Plant Genetics and Molecular Biology Unit, Department of Botany, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria. [email protected].
- 5ICAR-National Institute for Plant Biotechnology, Pusa Campus, New Delhi, 110012, India.
- 6ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, Pusa Campus, 110012, New Delhi, India.
Abstract
Background
Sphenostylis 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
The 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
The 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.
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BibTeX
@article{joshua2026phenotypic,
title = {{Phenotypic and molecular characterization of accessions and landraces of Sphenostylis stenocarpa (Hochst. ex A. Rich) Harms (African yam bean).}},
author = {Seun Cecilia Joshua and Odunayo Joseph Olawuyi and Amitha Cr Mithra Sevanthi},
journal = {BMC plant biology},
year = {2026},
month = aug,
doi = {10.1186/s12870-026-09697-y},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42972543},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Phenotypic and molecular characterization of accessions and landraces of Sphenostylis stenocarpa (Hochst. ex A. Rich) Harms (African yam bean).
AU - Seun Cecilia Joshua
AU - Odunayo Joseph Olawuyi
AU - Amitha Cr Mithra Sevanthi
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/08/06
JO - BMC plant biology
DO - 10.1186/s12870-026-09697-y
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42972543
AB - Background Sphenostylis 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 The 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 The 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.
SN - 1471-2229
ER -