Genome wide selection for Eucalyptus improvement at international paper in Brazil

The efficiency of plant breeding depends mainly on two actions of the breeder: creation and subsequent identification of superior genotypes. In both actions, selection plays a fundamental role in the definition of crosses to be performed, with interest in creating new genotypes and identifying superior trees to be used commercially. The great attraction of molecular tools for plant breeding is the direct use of DNA information in selection, allowing higher efficiency, quickness in obtaining genetic gains with relatively low costs, when compared to the traditional selection based on phenotypic data. All these objectives can be reached through a new approach: genome-wide selection (GWS) or just genomic selection (GS). Genomic selection can be applied in breeding programs of any species. Results obtained in simulated data indicated that GWS can be very profitable in eucalyptus breeding [1]. GWS is based on selection exclusively by molecular markers, after having their genetic effects estimated based on phenotypic data, in a breeding population sample [2]. The present work aims to characterize and estimate genetic parameters of a hybrid progeny test, the population that will compose the genome-wide selection study at International Paper in Brazil. Material and methods The International Paper Brazil population chosen for genome-wide selection purposes is installed in a Hybrid Progeny Test, comprising 58 crosses from controlled pollination of Eucalyptus grandis and Eucalyptus urophylla and five common checks (commercial clones of the company), totaling 63 treatments. These 58 families are derived from 56 different parents crossed. The test was installed in July 2006 in Brotas (Sao Paulo State, Brazil) in randomized complete block design, with six plants per plot and eight blocks, corresponding to a total of 3,024 plants. In 2011 the test was evaluated, performing the measurement of diameter at breast high (DBH) and plant height of the progenies. The obtained data were analyzed in Selegen-REML/BLUP software for the estimation of genetic parameters. The analysis, will allow the identification of the elite individual trees, which comprised the GWS population, ranking the best living trees of the test by estimating the annual average increment and morphological aspects (removing dead, forked and broken trees). Following the selection of the GWS 1,000 trees population, xylem samples were collected and sent for DNA extraction and genotyping with DArT and SNP markers. Results