Genotyping of the SiDREB2 gene in worldwide foxtail millet ( Setaria italica (L.) P. Beauv.) genetic resources with special attention to Indian landraces

We genotyped Setaria italica Dehydration-responsive element-binding 2 (SiDREB2) gene, which had been reported to be associated with dehydration stress tolerance, in 588 accessions of foxtail millet from various parts of Eurasia and other regions by a dCAPS marker. Of these, 480 accessions were genotyped in ribosomal DNA (rDNA), polyphenol oxidase (PPO) gene and Heading date 1 (HD1) gene in our previous studies, and 108 accessions from India were newly used in this study and genotyped in these genes in addition to the SiDREB2 gene. We compared the geographical distribution of the SiDREB2 genotypes with that of these three genes. Accessions from countries in South Asia including India and Sri Lanka were the most variable in the SiDREB2 gene followed by Korean accessions and Japanese accessions, suggesting that Indian accessions and East Asian accessions are useful as genetic resources for dehydration stress tolerance. This study also showed that although Indian accessions are not so diverse in rDNA and in transposon display markers previously studied, they are diverse in adaptive genes such as SiDREB2, PPO and HD1 genes.