Elena V. Blinova

This article presents information on the botanical composition, geographic diversity, and breeding level of the active oat collection of VIR, which has served as the initial material for oat breeding in the Russian Federation more than a century-long period. Here is a description of the genetic collection including alleles of identified genes for various morphological, biological, and biochemical traits. To expand the genetic basis of cultivated oats, the article presents the results of a comprehensive study of all wild species of the genus Avena L. in terms of evolution, phylogeny, and breeding value. It also presents the results of a field study of a wide range of economically valuable traits in the active oat collection, conducted within the VIR experimental network in various ecological and geographical zones of our country. In addition to describing the identified sources of economically valuable traits, it provides an overview of a number of developed donors of semi-dwarfness and lodging resistance with various alleles of the semi-dwarf gene. The article also summarizes the results of fruitful collaboration with Russian breeding institutions in terms of distributing source material based on a comprehensive study of the active oat collection for various oat breeding directions. Thus, the active oat collection of VIR is comprehensively studied, reliably preserved, and sustainably used for breeding purposes in the Russian Federation.

Background. The uses of oat, one of the most important cereal crops, are predetermined by the quality of its grain. The objective was to study the chemical composition features in Avena sativa L. var. inermis Koern., A. sativa var. aurea Koern., and A. sativa var. mutica Alef. in order to identify accessions from the VIR collection that could serve as sources of high protein, starch, oil, high and low beta-glucan content, and optimal fatty acid composition for food and feed purposes, and to analyze the metabolic profiles of the studied oat varieties. Materials and methods. The studied material represented three botanical varieties of A. sativa of different geographic origin, reproduced in 2021–2023 in Northwest Russia. Biochemical parameters were assessed according to the guidelines adopted by VIR. Results. The chemical composition (the content of protein, starch, oil, beta-glucans, antioxidants, phenolic compounds, fatty acids, and metabolites) in the grain of three oat varieties was analyzed, and its nutritional food and feed value was established. The variability and interrelations among the studied features were identified. Conclusion. The naked oat accessions significantly differed from the covered ones in higher values of all the studied parameters. Statistically significant differences were found in the chemical composition of the grain in the three oat varieties. A. sativa accessions, differing in the presence/absence of the hull and the color of the flower glumes (white or yellow), also manifested significant differences in the intensity of major physiological and biochemical processes. Potential possibilities of using individual genotypes of cultivated oats were revealed, and accessions were identified as sources of valuable traits for various areas of breeding for food and feed purposes.

Background. Oat is one of the most widespread and important cereal crops in the global agricultural production. Searching for new high-yielding and high-quality genotypes remains relevant, especially in the context of the global trend of climate change, when most local oat varieties may become economically ineffective. Materials and methods. The material for this study included 50 local varieties of the diploid cultivated oat species Avena strigosa Schreb. from the VIR collection, having diverse geographical origins. The material was studied under the conditions of Pushkin and Pavlovsk Laboratories of VIR in 2023–2024. As a result of the study, main valuable agronomic traits and biochemical properties of grains were identified. The field testing of the oat collection was carried out on the basis of the guidelines for the study of the VIR collection; biochemical indicators were assessed using conventional techniques. Molecular genetic research methods (DNA isolation, polymerase chain reaction, and Sanger sequencing) were applied to contrasting oat accessions. The allelic state of the genes associated with the biosynthesis of β -glucans was analyzed. Results and conclusion. The data are presented on the content of β -glucans, a group of soluble polysaccharides, in A. strigosa accessions from the VIR collection. The biochemical composition of diploid oat grains was studied, and the percentage of β- glucans was calculated. Using modern molecular genetic research methods, the allelic state of the key gene for the biosynthesis of this group of compounds, CslF6 , was identified. Sanger sequencing of the gene’s coding part did not reveal any rearrangements in the nucleotide sequence of this gene.

Background. Oat is one of the most widespread and important cereal crops in the global agricultural production. Searching for new high-yielding and high-quality genotypes remains relevant, especially in the context of the global trend of climate change, when most local oat varieties may become economically ineffective.Materials and methods. The material for this study included 50 local varieties of the diploid cultivated oat species Avena strigosa Schreb. from the VIR collection, having diverse geographical origins. The material was studied under the conditions of Pushkin and Pavlovsk Laboratories of VIR in 2023–2024. As a result of the study, main valuable agronomic traits and biochemical properties of grains were identified. The field testing of the oat collection was carried out on the basis of the guidelines for the study of the VIR collection; biochemical indicators were assessed using conventional techniques. Molecular genetic research methods (DNA isolation, polymerase chain reaction, and Sanger sequencing) were applied to contrasting oat accessions. The allelic state of the genes associated with the biosynthesis of β-glucans was analyzed.Results and conclusion. The data are presented on the content of β-glucans, a group of soluble polysaccharides, in A. strigosa accessions from the VIR collection. The biochemical composition of diploid oat grains was studied, and the percentage of β-glucans was calculated. Using modern molecular genetic research methods, the allelic state of the key gene for the biosynthesis of this group of compounds, CslF6, was identified. Sanger sequencing of the gene’s coding part did not reveal any rearrangements in the nucleotide sequence of this gene.

Background. Studying genetic diversity and identifying sources of valuable agronomic traits for specific environmental conditions is of great importance for plant breeders when they select source material for crop improvement. Materials and methods. Three hundred and seven oat accessions of various ecogeographic origin were tested under the conditions of the Kuban Experiment Station, a branch of the N.I. Vavilov All-Russian Institute of Plant Genetic Resources (VIR), in 2014–2019. Cv. ‘Valdin 765’ served as the reference. Weather conditions across the years of the study were contrasting in terms of the hydrothermal regime. Results. The inter-cultivar and year-to-year variability of the oat collection was analyzed in Krasnodar Territory and accessions promising for breeding were identified for a set of useful agronomic traits. The most significant differences among the studied oat accessions were recorded for the time of ripening and panicle characteristics. High yield of an accession under the conditions of Krasnodar Territory was associated with its high 1000 grain weight, which positively correlated with the duration of the period from panicle emergence to ripening and negatively with the length of the panicle, number of grains per panicle, plant height, and duration of the periods from germination to panicle emergence and from germination to ripening. Conclusion. The study of useful agronomic traits resulted in identifying oat accessions with the yield exceeding the reference (cv. ‘Valdin 765’) by 114–135%, that ripened 6–8 days earlier than the reference, were resistant to lodging, had short stems, manifested combined resistance (9 points) to crown and stem rust, low filminess (< 25%), good leafiness, high oil content (> 6%), increased protein content (> 14%), and high levels of yield structure components.

Background. The purpose of this work was to develop calibration models for rapid assessment of the main biochemical parameters of grain quality of naked and covered black oat (Avena strigosa Schreb.) using near-infrared reflectance (NIR) spectroscopy. The use of whole oat grains makes it possible to preserve breeding material of special value, which is very important for breeders. Materials and methods. Black oat grain from 50 accessions from the VIR collection was grown in 2014–2020 in various agro-ecological conditions of the Russian Federation. Chemical parameter values for constructing calibration models were determined in the Laboratory of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology of VIR using traditional methods, such as Kjeldahl for protein/nitrogen, Soxhlet extraction (modified by S.V. Rushkovsky) for oil, polarimetry according to Evers for starch, and gravimetry for beta-glucans. Results. The work resulted in the construction of calibration models for the determination of protein, oil, starch and beta-glucans in whole grains of black oat by a Bruker's MATRIX-I IR analyzer (Germany). A test batch of 20 accessions was used for assessing reliability of the constructed models. The models for determining protein, starch and oil were found to be reliable, while the model for determining beta-glucans needs improvements. It was found that the difference between the values obtained by spectroscopy and by standard chemical methods averaged 0.38 % for protein, 0.57 % for starch and 0.30 % for oil, which does not exceed the maximum permissible error of parallel measurements. The relative difference between the studied indicators does not exceed 3-6 % on an average. Conclusion. The proposed physical method for the analysis of black oat grain allows an express preliminary assessment of breeding material with a high speed of analysis. The main advantages of the method include the possibility of preserving valuable starting material, economizing on reagents, increasing labor efficiency, and obtaining data simultaneously on several parameters of the scanned sample with a specified repeatability.

The range of methods for assessing the quality of grain and its technological properties in cereal crops, of oat in particular, is extremely limited. The available methods are labor-intensive and not always sufficiently informative. The variety of modern processing methods dictates the necessity in searching for more universal and informative assessment methods. Cereal crop breeding also requires high-speed and low-cost methods for assessing grain quality. The present work is a methodological study that uses a limited set oat accessions from the genetic collection of VIR, differing by geographical origin and contrasting technological properties, with an aim of developing a new grain quality assessment method and testing new methods for analyzing technological properties. The resulting criteria are compared with each other and with more traditional indicators. New systems for assessing the technological properties of grain of naked and covered oat have been proposed. A new method of sedimentation analysis for cereal crops is proposed. The diversity of the oat protein complex is exemplified in the results of sedimentation analysis, and of the carbohydrate complex – in the results of its testing by a micro-visco-amylograph. The variety of interactions between oat grain storage substances and wheat material during joint processing is shown by assessing the rheological properties of the dough mixture using a farinograph. The obtained results can be recommended for the assessment for breeding purposes, as well as for obtaining complete information about the quality of oat grain for the purpose of its further processing.

Background. Oat is an important food and feed cereal crop in Russia. The area under oats is 10 million ha worldwide, and 3 million ha in Russia. Acid soils with excessive content of exchangeable aluminum occupy almost every third hectare in the exUSSR territory. Oats are relatively resistant to unfavorable soil factors. Among cereal crops, oat is second only to rye and triticale in terms of resistance to exchangeable Al forms. Despite the crop’s high environmental plasticity, an important condition for obtaining sustainable oat yields is the development of new cultivars with resistance to adverse environmental factors, including metal toxicity and high soil acidity.The objective of this work was to search for oat cultivars resistant to soil stressors (excess of Н+ and Al3+) for use in breeding for edaphic resistance.Materials and methods. The research material included 687 oat accessions from the VIR global plant genetic resources collection. The accessions underwent laboratory evaluation of their aluminum tolerance at the initial growth and development stages using the method of measuring radicle growth after the exposure to aluminum stress. Reproducibility of the used modification of the method was mathematically proved.Results and discussion. Significant variation in the resistance to the studied stressor was observed among the accessions. The regions acting as sources of valuable aluminum resistance genes were identified for the crop. The accessions selected for their high resistance to exchangeable aluminum can be used in breeding programs to develop high-yielding oat cultivars with edaphic resistance.

The central problem that Vavilov was investigating was the overall concept of global plant genetic resources. The theoretical basis of this concept consisted of the law of homologous series in variation, research on the problem of species as a system, botanical and geographical bases of plant breeding, and the key theory of the centers of origin of cultivated plants. The VIR global collection of plant genetic resources collected by Vavilov and his associates from all over the world reflects the fullness of botanical, morphological and genetic diversity, and can be used for historical, evolutionary, phylogenetic and applied breeding research aimed at unlocking the potential of all the collection material. The whole diversity of cultivated oats, as was proved by Vavilov, had originated from segetal weeds. This process can be clearly traced in Spain on the example of the cultivated diploid species A. strigosa, A. abyssinica in Ethiopia, A. byzantina in Turkey and Iran, and on segetal forms of A. sativa. The studies of the morphological features as a whole do not yield a complete picture of the evolutionary and systematic status of some oat species and forms. The methods and approaches that use DNA markers and genomic technologies, and are promising for the study of oat polymorphism and phylogeny have been actively researched recently. A number of works devoted to the molecular aspects of the evolution and phylogeny of the genus Avena have recently appeared. The research uses various markers of genes, gene regions, intergenic spacers (internal and external), both nuclear and chloroplast and mitochondrial, genomic approaches and other modern methods. On the basis of a comprehensive study of the complete intraspecific diversity from different zones of the distribution range of cultivated oat species as well as on the basis of an analysis of data on the geography of forms and species distribution ranges, it was established that the process of hexaploid species formation also took place in the western part of the Mediterranean, and subsequently, when moving eastward, these forms started occupying all the vast spaces in the region of the Southwest Asian center, forming a large intraspecific diversity of wild forms and weedy ones in transit to cultivated hexaploid oat species. An analysis of the intraspecific diversity of landraces has specified the centers of morphogenesis of all cultivated oat species. The phylogenetic analysis of the representative intraspecific diversity of cultivated and wild Avena species carried out using next generation sequencing (NGS) showed that diploid species with A-genome variants are in fact not primary diploids, but a peculiar Mediterranean introgressive hybridization complex of species that sporadically enter into interspecific hybridization. It was established that the tetraploid cultivated species A. abyssinica had most likely originated from the wild A. vaviloviana. An analysis of the ways of A. sativa and A. byzantina domestication showed that the most widespread ribotype of the A. sativa hexaploid was inherited from A. ludoviciana, and the second most widespread one, from A. magna, while A. byzantina has two unique ribotype families, most likely inherited from an extinct oat species or a still undiscovered cryptospecies.

In this article, we analyzed the origin of wild polyploid oats (Avena L., Poaceae) using the region 18S rDNA (partially)–ITS1–5.8S rDNA obtained via NGS. There are six tetraploid (2n = 28) and four hexaploid (2n = 42) wild species differing by specific genome combinations: A. barbata, A. vaviloviana (AB), A. agadiriana (AB or BB), A. magna, A. murphyi, A. insularis (AC or CD), A. ludoviciana, A. sterilis, A. fatua, and A. occidentalis (ACD). We compared the pool of marker sequences of polyploid oats with those of their putative diploid ancestors: A. atlantica (As-genome), A. hirtula (As), A. canariensis (Ac), A. ventricosa (Cv), and A. clauda (paleopolyploid with Cp and A-related rDNA). We found 15 major ribotypes (more than 1000 reads per rDNA pool) in polyploid oats. Comparing them, we found that the AB-tetraploid oats possibly inherited their A-genome ribotypes from A. atlantica (As1-ribotype), whereas their B-genome ribotype is specific and can be a derivative of the A-genome family. Our data do not support the hypothesis of the CD-genome set in A. magna, A. murphyi, and A. insularis: they have an AC-genome ribotype constitution instead. The C-genome-related sequences could have been obtained from A. ventricosa. Hexaploids show a different ribotype pattern than tetraploids; the main ribotypes of A. fatua, A. ludoviciana, and A. sterilis probably belong to the D-group and are also shared with one of the major ribotypes of A. clauda.