Buckwheat is a nutritionally valuable crop, an alternative to common cereals also usable in gluten-free diets. The selection of buckwheat genotypes suitable for further breeding requires the characterization and evaluation of genetic resources. The main objective of this work was to evaluate selected phenotypic and morphological traits using international buckwheat descriptors, including total phenolic content and antioxidant activity, on a unique set of 136 common buckwheat accessions grown in 2019–2020 under Czech Republic conditions. In addition, UHPLC-ESI- MS/MS was used to analyze a wide spectrum of 20 phenolic compounds in buckwheat seeds, including four flavanols, three phenolic acids, seven flavonols, four flavones, and two flavanones. Significant differences among years and genotypes were observed for morphological traits (plant height and 1000-seed weight) and antioxidant activity, as well as levels of observed chemical compounds. Antioxidant activity, crude protein content, plant height and rutin content were characterized by higher mean values in 2020 than in 2019 and vice versa for total polyphenol content and 1000-seed weight. Crude protein content was the most stable across years, while total polyphenol content and rutin content varied greatly from year to year. The most abundant phenolic compounds were rutin, hyperoside, epicatechin, catechin, vitexin, isovitexin, orientin and isoorientin. Protein content was negatively correlated with plant height, catechin and epicatechin content. On the other hand, AA and TPC were positively correlated with rutin, hyperoside and chlorogenic acid. Five accessions showed high stability of the evaluated traits under changing conditions within both years of observation. These materials can be used in breeding programmes aimed at improving buckwheat genotypes with emphasis on quality traits.

The objective of this work was to induce and detect somaclonal variation in arracacha (Arracacia xanthorrhiza) plants regenerated via indirect morphogenesis, in order to evaluate the potential of this technique to produce new genotypes for breeding purposes of this crop. Calli were induced from petiole segments on Murashige & Skoog (MS) medium supplied with 0.1 mg L-1 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid. The regeneration of plants via indirect morphogenesis was carried out on half-strength MS medium without plant growth regulators. Fifteen randomly chosen plants were subjected to flow cytometry and “inter-simple sequence repeat” (ISSR) analysis. Ploidy level remained stable in all tested regenerants (2n=4x=44), with no changes in the genome. Eighteen ISSR primers produced a total of 1,584 fragments in all samples. Two ISSR primers produced four polymorphic fragments in 26.7% of the tested samples. Somaclonal variation in arracacha is a result of plant regeneration via indirect morphogenesis and can be detected by ISSR markers.

BackgroundYacon (Smallanthus sonchifolius) is a root crop native to the Andean region. Low sexual reproductive capacity is a major constraint facing the genetic breeding of this crop. Biotechnological techniques offer alternative ways to widen genetic variability. We investigated somaclonal variation in regenerants of yacon derived from in vitro somatic embryogenesis using simple sequence repeat (ISSR) analysis and flow cytometry.ResultsTwenty tested ISSR primers provided a total of 7848 bands in 60 in vitro regenerants and control plant. The number of bands for each primer varied from 3 to 10, and an average of 6.95 bands was obtained per ISSR primer. Eight primers were polymorphic and generated 10 polymorphic bands with 7.19% mean polymorphism. ISSR analysis revealed genetic variability in 6 plants under study. These regenerants had Jaccard's distances 0.104, 0.020, 0.040, 0.106, 0.163 and 0.040. Flow cytometric analysis did not reveal changes of relative nuclear DNA content in regenerants suggesting that the plants obtained via somatic embryogenesis had maintained stable octoploid levels.ConclusionsOur findings show that indirect somatic embryogenesis could be used in yacon improvement to widen genetic variability, especially when low sexual reproductive capacity hinders classical ways of breeding

Quinoa is a highly nutritious crop with diverse applications in the food industry. The study assessed the impact of various processing techniques, including microwaving, boiling, roasting, steaming, flaking, and germination, on the crude protein content (CP), total phenolic content (TPC), antioxidant activity (AA), and 12 phenolic compounds in quinoa. CP was significantly affected by the heat treatments. Boiled quinoa flakes exhibited the highest average CP, boiling and roasting the lowest. Microwaving strongly enhanced the TPC and the content of six bioactive compounds (CFA, KMP, NAR, QCE, RUT, SA), while boiling and steaming had the most adverse effect. Germination improved the overall nutritional profile of quinoa. The most pronounced increase in the bioactive metabolites occurred between the third and fifth day of germination in a genotype-dependent manner. Six metabolites (NAR, SA, 4BA, IQ, PC, IH) were detected in germinated quinoa for the first time. The results emphasize the substantial influence of processing techniques and type of sample on quinoa nutritional quality and underscore the importance of proper consideration of those factors to obtain nutritionally optimal food products.