• Juncheng Zhang,Dejian Zhang,Yawei Fan,Cuicui Li,Pengkun Xu,Wei Li,Qi Sun,Xiaodong Huang,Chunyu Zhang,Linyue Wu,Huaizhou Yang,Shiyu Wang,Xiaomin Su,Xingxing Li,Yingying Song,Meng-en Wu,Xingming Lian &Yibo Li

Nature Communications volume 12, Article number: 5673 (2021)

Cloning quantitative trait locus (QTL) is time consuming and laborious, which hinders the understanding of natural variation and genetic diversity. Here, we introduce RapMap, a method for rapid multi-QTL mapping by employing F2 gradient populations (F2GPs) constructed by minor-phenotypic-difference accessions. The co-segregation standard of the single-locus genetic models ensures simultaneous integration of a three-in-one framework in RapMap i.e. detecting a real QTL, confirming its effect, and obtaining its near-isogenic line-like line (NIL-LL). We demonstrate the feasibility of RapMap by cloning eight rice grain-size genes using 15 F2GPs in three years. These genes explain a total of 75% of grain shape variation. Allele frequency analysis of these genes using a large germplasm collection reveals directional selection of the slender and long grains in indica rice domestication. In addition, major grain-size genes have been strongly selected during rice domestication. We think application of RapMap in crops will accelerate gene discovery and genomic breeding.

全文链接：https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-021-25961-1