Among cereals, barley is tolerant to high levels of salinity stress; however, its performance and global production are still dramatically affected by salinity. In this study, we evaluated the behavior of a set of advanced genotypes of barley with aim of assessing the physiological and molecular mechanisms involved in salinity tolerance. The experiment was conducted using a hydroponic system at optimal growing temperature and photoperiod conditions. The results of the analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed significant effects for salinity treatments and genotypes in terms of all measured traits. Salinity stress significantly increased the root and shoot Na+ contents and root-to-shoot Na⁺ and K⁺ translocations. In contrast, other physiological features, gas exchange-related traits, as well as root and shoot biomasses were significantly decreased due to salinity stress. Based on the results of the multi-trait genotype ideotype distance index (MGIDI) as a multiple-traits method, G12 and G14 were identified as the superior salt-tolerant advanced genotypes. In the molecular analysis, salinity stress significantly increased the mean relative expression of HvSOS1, HvSOS3, HvHKT2, HvHKT3, HvNHX1, and HvNHX3 genes by 12.87-, 3.16-, 3.65-, 2.54-, 2.19-, and 3.18-fold more than the control conditions, respectively. The results of heatmap-based correlation and principal component analysis (PCA) revealed a clear association pattern among measured traits and expression data. Indeed, these associations confirmed relationships between tolerance pathways and physiological functions. In conclusion, the genotype G14 (D10*2/4/Productive/3/Roho//Alger/Ceres362-1-1) responded well to salinity stress and showed a better expression pattern of studied genes than other genotypes. Hence, this promising genotype can be a candidate for further assessments before commercial introduction.

Climate change has caused breeders to focus on varieties that are able to grow under unfavorable conditions, such as drought, high and low temperatures, salinity, and other stressors. In recent decades, progress in biotechnology and its related tools has provided opportunities to dissect and decipher the genetic basis of tolerance to various stress conditions. One such approach is the identification of genomic regions that are linked with specific or multiple characteristics. Cereal crops have a key role in supplying the energy required for human and animal populations. However, crop products are dramatically affected by various environmental stresses. Barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) is one of the oldest domesticated crops that is cultivated globally. Research has shown that, compared with other cereals, barley is well adapted to various harsh environmental conditions. There is ample literature regarding these responses to abiotic stressors, as well as the genomic regions associated with the various morpho-physiological and biochemical traits of stress tolerance. This review focuses on (i) identifying the tolerance mechanisms that are important for stable growth and development, and (ii) the applicability of QTL mapping and association analysis in identifying genomic regions linked with stress-tolerance traits, in order to help breeders in marker-assisted selection (MAS) to quickly screen tolerant germplasms in their breeding cycles. Overall, the information presented here will inform and assist future barley breeding programs.

Knowledge of the natural patterns of genetic variation and their evolutionary basis is required for sustainable management and conservation of wheat germplasm. In the current study, the genetic diversity and population structure of 100 individuals from four Triticum and Aegilops species (including T. aestivum, Ae. tauschii, Ae. cylindrica, and Ae. crassa) were investigated using two gene-based markers (start codon targeted (SCoT) polymorphism and CAAT-box derived polymorphism (CBDP)) and simple-sequence repeats (SSRs). The SCoT, CBDP, and SSR markers yielded 76, 116, and 48 polymorphism fragments, respectively. The CBDP marker had greater efficiency than the SCoT and SSR markers due to its higher polymorphism content information (PIC), resolving power (Rp), and marker index (MI). Based on an analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) performed using all marker systems and combined data, there was a higher distribution of genetic variation within species than among them. Ae. cylindrica and Ae. tauschii had the highest values for all genetic variation parameters. A cluster analysis using each marker system and combined data showed that the SSR marker had greater efficiency in grouping of tested accessions, such that the results of principal coordinate analysis (PCoA) and population structure confirmed the obtained clustering patterns. Hence, combining the SCoT and CBDP markers with polymorphic SSR markers may be useful in genetic fingerprinting and fine mapping and for association analysis in wheat and its germplasm for various agronomic traits or tolerance mechanisms to environmental stresses.

In the present study, we estimated genetic diversity and population structure in 186 accessions of Triticum and Aegilops species using 24 simple sequence repeat markers (SSR). Furthermore, an association analysis was performed for antioxidant activities, including guaiacol peroxidase (GPX), ascorbate peroxidase (APX), peroxidase (POX), catalase (CAT), and dry matter (DM) under two control and drought stress conditions. Our findings showed that drought treatment significantly decreased DM, whereas activities of all antioxidant enzymes were increased compared to the control conditions. The results of correlation analysis indicated that, under drought stress conditions, all biochemical traits had a positive and significant association with each other and with dry matter. In the molecular section, the results of the analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) indicated that the molecular variation within species is more than within them. The dendrogram obtained by cluster analysis showed that grouping the investigated accessions was in accordance with their genomic constitutions. The results of association analysis revealed 8 and 9 significant marker–trait associations (MTA) under control and drought stress conditions, respectively. Among identified MTAs, two associations were simultaneously found in both growing conditions. Moreover, several SSR markers were associated with multiple traits across both conditions. In conclusion, our results could provide worthwhile information regarding marker-assisted selection for the activity of antioxidant enzymes in future breeding programs.

Exploring genetic diversity and grouping genetic materials into distinguished clusters are basic steps in developing sustainable crop varieties within any breeding program. In this line, the molecular marker systems serve as one of the most important biological tools that provide valuable information at the molecular level. In this dataset, three molecular marker techniques, including inter-primer binding site (iPBS), Start codon-targeted (SCoT), and CAAT box–derived polymorphism (CBDP) in terms of their potential to explore genetic diversity and group the 111 Aegilops tauschii accessions. Based on the results, iPBS primers showed higher values for total amplified fragments (TAF = 14.70), polymorphic amplified fragments (PAF = 14.70), polymorphism information content (PIC = 0.41), marker index (MI = 16.31), and resolving power (Rp = 6.13) compare to SCoT (TAF = 10.80; PAF = 10.80; PIC = 0.38; MI = 12.90; Rp = 4.12) and CBDP (TAF = 9.93; PAF = 9.33; PIC = 0.37; MI = 4.12; Rp = 3.44) markers. In all analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) based each marker technique, the genetic variation within populations was exceeded the variation among them (SCoT = 57 % vs 42 %; CBDP = 58 % vs 42 %; iPBS = 68 % vs 32 %). However, gene-targeted markers (SCoT and CBDP) showed more efficiency in grouping the accessions compared to iPBS technique. In more detail, CBDP markers revealed a clearer and more stable grouping of Ae. tauschii accessions, so grouping patterns were consistent with the geographical distributions of the studied accessions. Overall, this report suggests that the CBDP marker technique can serve as a powerful genotyping tool with substantial potential for assessing genetic diversity and further phylogenetic studies.