Genetic Resources of Cereal and Oilseed Crops for Sustainable Breeding and Food Security

Dear Colleagues,

Cereal and oilseed crops are indispensable for existence of humankind. They are ubiquitously used for human and animal nutrition, medicinal purposes, obtaining ecologically friendly materials. Genebanks play an important role in conservation and the study of plant genetic resources. Collections of genetic resources of cereal and oilseed crops conserved in Genebanks include thousands of accessions representing old and modern varieties, landraces, breeding lines, and also wild species that can be used for breeding new genotypes possessing valuable traits.

Due to the domestication “bottleneck” effect in human history, the genetic basis of a number of cereal and oilseed crop species is comparatively narrow. Hybridization with landraces and wild species significantly facilitates broadening genetic diversity of breeding material for resistance to harmful organisms and tolerance to abiotic stressors. Distant hybridization may bring completely new traits that can revolutionize crop breeding and production. As an example, the phenomenon of cytoplasmic male sterility (CMS) and fertility restoration, which is an important factor of speciation during plant evolution, has gained new significance as the basis for seed production in heterotic hybrid breeding.

Dr. Irina N. Anisimova
Dr. Svetlana Goryunova
Dr. Eugene Radchenko
Guest Editors

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