Harnessing intra-varietal variation for agro-morphological and nutritional traits in a popular rice landrace for sustainable food security in tropical islands.

Introduction: Rice crop meets the calorie and nutritional requirements of a larger segment of the global population. Here, we report the occurrence of intra-varietal variation in a popular rice landrace C14-8 traditionally grown under the geographical isolation of the Andaman Islands. Methods: Based on grain husk color, four groups were formed, wherein the extent of intra-varietal variation was studied by employing 22 agro-morphological and biochemical traits. Results: Among the traits studied, flavonoid and anthocyanin contents and grain yield exhibited a wider spectrum of variability due to more coefficients of variation (>25%). The first five principal components (PCs) of principal components analysis explained a significant proportion of the variation (91%) and the first two PCs explained 63.3% of the total variation, with PC1 and PC2 explaining 35.44 and 27.91%, respectively. A total of 50 highly variable SSR (HvSSR) markers spanning over 12 chromosomes produced 314 alleles, which ranged from 1 to 15 alleles per marker, with an average of 6.28. Of the 314 alleles, 64 alleles were found to be rare among the C14-8 selections. While 62% of HvSSR markers exhibited polymorphism among the C14-8 population, chromosomes 2, 7, 9, and 11 harbored the most polymorphic loci. The group clustering of the selections through HvSSR markers conformed to the grouping based on grain husk coloration. Discussion: Our studies on the existence and pertinence of intra-varietal variations are expected to be of significance in the realms of evolutionary biology and sustainable food and nutritional security under the changing climate.

Shelf life enhancement of guava (Psidium guajava cv. Baruipur) stored under pilot scale modified atmosphere storage system.

PRACTICAL APPLICATION: The developed modified atmosphere storage (MAS) system has increased the shelf life of Guava up to 20 and 9 days at 10 °C and 25 °C, respectively. This extended period will be very much effective for providing the buffer period to the fresh Guava and facilitate extra time to the farmers for its marketing. The uniquely developed MAS system is helpful for the farmers for on-farm storage of fresh Guava at a large scale and will provide smooth handling and transportation for retailing and marketing.