Preserving Biodiversity in Marginal Rural Areas: Assessment of Morphological and Genetic Variability of a Sicilian Common Bean Germplasm Collection.

ABSTRACT: The historical cultivation of common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) has resulted in the development of local populations/cultivars in restricted Italian rural areas. Many common bean landraces, still cultivated in small mountain areas from Sicily, have become outdated and endangered due to the commercial varieties spreading. These accessions are poorly known but often represent a genetic heritage to be preserved and enhanced. The ex situ conservation of fifty-seven Sicilian common bean landraces was carried out at the "Living Plants Germplasm Bank" at Ucria (Messina, Italy), founded by the Nebrodi Regional Park, together with the "Sicilian Plant Germplasm Repository" of University of Palermo (SPGR/PA). To assess the germplasm genetic diversity, nineteen morphological traits and eight Simple

SUBMITTER: Fiore MC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7463873 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature