Exploring Genetic Diversity for Common Bean Improvement: Dissecting Domestication Traits and Drought Tolerance Strategies through Population Structure and QTL Analysis

Denning-James, Kate Elizabeth (2025) Exploring Genetic Diversity for Common Bean Improvement: Dissecting Domestication Traits and Drought Tolerance Strategies through Population Structure and QTL Analysis. Doctoral thesis, University of East Anglia.

Preview

PDF Download (115MB) | Preview

Abstract

Common beans, Phaseolus vulgaris, are an important crop for food and nutritional security and the ecosystem services they provide, especially in developing countries. They are adapted to a broad range of ecogeographic conditions, therefore are genetically diverse and have a complex population structure. This includes two wild gene pools, an ancient-relic population, two domesticated gene pools and races within each gene pool. There is frequent gene flow, for example, between the wild and domesticated populations, the domesticated gene pools and between the races.

The two gene pools (Andean and Mesoamerican) overlap in Colombia. However, the Colombian common bean population structure and level of admixture have not been defined. This research is testing the hypothesis that Colombia has a large amount of genetic admixture diversity and introgressed lines, compared to the ‘ancestral’ Andean and Mesoamerican gene pools.

This genetic diversity provides a reservoir of adaptive genes that could be used in genetic research and crop improvement. Mobilising genetic diversity into elite backgrounds could help to reduce the effects of climate change on yields, protecting food security. Exploring the genetic diversity in landraces, and linking to phenotypes, could improve tolerance to abiotic stresses in elite cultivars and help safeguard future food security through breeding programs.

144 common beans have been sequenced, primarily landraces from Colombia but also wild accessions and heirlooms from neighbouring countries. The sequence data has been analysed to infer the population structure and understand the evolution of the diversity panel. The PhD also involves phenotyping for domestication traits and tolerance to water-deficit to identify molecular markers associated with the traits in common beans via GWAS. The results will support future breeding programs to reduce the effects of climate change on common bean yields.

Item Type:	Thesis (Doctoral)
Faculty \ School:	Faculty of Science > School of Biological Sciences
Depositing User:	Chris White
Date Deposited:	21 May 2026 09:31
Last Modified:	21 May 2026 09:31
URI:	https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/103122
DOI:

Downloads

Actions (login required)

View Item