%0 Journal Article %A YANG Yanbing %A ZHANG Huidi %A CHEN Guiling %A ZHANG Han %A WANG Xuemei %A WANG Runfeng %A QIN Ling %A GUAN Yan'an %T Phenotypic Evaluation and Genetic Analysis of Elite Foxtail Millet [Setaria italic (L.) P. Beauv.] Cultivars From Different Eco-Regions %D 2021 %R 10.11869/j.issn.100-8551.2021.05.1020 %J Journal of Nuclear Agricultural Sciences %P 1020-1029 %V 35 %N 5 %X Elite foxtail millet cultivars such as Yugu 1, Jingu 21, and so on, contribute significantly to the development of foxtail millet industry. To better understand the genetic basis of excellent traits and the value in use of foxtail millet, phenotypic identification and genetic variation analysis were performed on 12 major foxtail millet cultivars selected from different ecological regions in this study. The results showed that large variations in plant height, panicle length, panicle thickness, internode length, single panicle weight, growth period and yellow pigment content were observed among the 12 cultivars. PCR amplification was carried out for the 12 elite foxtail millet cultivars by using SSR markers. A total of 258 polymorphic loci were detected by 79 pairs of SSR primers, with an average of 3.265 8 per pair. The polymorphism information content (PIC) values of the SSR markers ranged from 0.141 1 to 0.711 6, with an average of 0.510 1. 50 pairs of SSR primers had the PIC>0.5, accounting for 63.3% of the total polymorphic primers. The genetic distance between the 12 foxtail millet cultivars varied from 0.140 2 to 0.801 1, with an average of 0.473 7. The genetic distance between Yugu 1 and Canggu 4 from North China summer-sown foxtail millet region was the minimum, while Canggu 4 showed the highest genetic distance from native cultivar Jinxiangyu coming from Inner Mongolia plateau. Generally, the genetic distance between cultivars from North China summer-sown foxtail millet region and those from Northwest early spring-sown foxtail millet region was relative large. The 12 major cultivars could be classed into two groups at the genetic similarity coefficient of 0.594. Group I included Jigu 12, Jigu 19, Canggu 4, Yugu 1 and Ai 88 from North China summer-sown foxtail millet region, and the remaining seven cultivars formed Group II. Clustering of the 12 elite cultivars was consistent with the eco-regions where they released. The population structure was in agreement with that of cluster analysis, suggesting that gene exchanges may occur among cultivars from summer-sown and spring-sown foxtail millet regions. In summary, cultivars from the same eco-regional origin had low genetic differences, while those from different ecological origins had large genetic differences. Genetic differences among cultivars within North China summer-sown region were relative lower than those from other ecological regions. A large genetic difference was observed between cultivars from North China summer-sown region and those from northwest early-maturing spring-sown region. The varietal exchange between summer-sown and early-maturing spring-sown should be strengthened to enlarge the genetic variation in summer-sown foxtail millet in North China. These findings could provide a basis for superior foxtail millet breeding and promoting the utilization of germplasm resources. %U https://www.hnxb.org.cn/EN/10.11869/j.issn.100-8551.2021.05.1020