Source: TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY submitted to
IMPROVEMENT OF BREEDING MATERIAL AND COTTON CULTIVARS ADAPTED TO THE SOUTHERN HIGH PLAINS PRODUCTION REGION
Sponsoring Institution
National Institute of Food and Agriculture
Project Status
TERMINATED
Funding Source
HATCH
Reporting Frequency
Annual
Accession No.
0218277
Grant No.
(N/A)
Project No.
TEX09297
Proposal No.
(N/A)
Multistate No.
(N/A)
Program Code
(N/A)
Project Start Date
May 8, 2009
Project End Date
May 7, 2014
Grant Year
(N/A)
Project Director
Dever, JA, K..
Recipient Organization
TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY
750 AGRONOMY RD STE 2701
COLLEGE STATION,TX 77843-0001
Performing Department
Lubbock-TAMU Agr Res Cntr
Non Technical Summary
The Southern High Plains of Texas is a major cotton-producing region of the United States. As cotton acreage declines in areas traditionally known for producing high quality cotton fiber, the High Plains region remains less affected by volatility in other commodities and environmental constraints. Cotton fiber exports from the US have increased from 40% of production in 1997 to almost 80% in 2008. Quality demand on the export market is more stringent than indicated by domestic market signals. The High Plains is becoming more important as a reliable supplier of US cotton to the global market, and improved quality is expected. Texas is not traditionally regarded for high fiber quality production as the irrigated West or regions with longer growing seasons east of the Mississippi river. Intense breeding efforts are required to combine high fiber quality development and improved productivity in a short growing season with limited water and regional disease constraints. Incremental improvements in physical fiber properties combined with enhanced productivity by either yield components or tolerance to existing biotic and abiotic stress can, and has, significantly affect the economic impact of cotton on the Southern High Plains, already one of the most important economic drivers in the region. Up to 90% of US cotton production is cultivated to genetically engineered varieties, and a disproportionate effort of commercial cotton seed developers is dedicated to converting existing germplasm with biotechnology traits. Competition in a global market and a narrow genetic base for upland cotton improvement are an indication of the importance of a dedicated, publicly-supported cotton improvement program in the High Plains to the sustainability of continued cotton production in the region.
Animal Health Component
(N/A)
Research Effort Categories
Basic
(N/A)
Applied
(N/A)
Developmental
(N/A)
Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)Subject of Investigation (SOI)Field of Science (FOS)Percent
2021710108110%
2021719108110%
2021810108110%
2031710108110%
2031719108110%
2041710108110%
2061710108110%
2111710108110%
2121710108110%
2161710108110%
Knowledge Area
212 - Pathogens and Nematodes Affecting Plants; 206 - Basic Plant Biology; 204 - Plant Product Quality and Utility (Preharvest); 211 - Insects, Mites, and Other Arthropods Affecting Plants; 203 - Plant Biological Efficiency and Abiotic Stresses Affecting Plants; 216 - Integrated Pest Management Systems; 202 - Plant Genetic Resources;

Subject Of Investigation
1719 - Cotton, other; 1810 - Cottonseed; 1710 - Upland cotton;

Field Of Science
1081 - Breeding;
Goals / Objectives
Develop breeding stocks with: 1) Improved fiber quality, 2) Tolerance to selected diseases and nematodes, 3) Tolerance to selected abiotic stresses, 4) Enhanced earliness and productivity, and 5) Expansion of genetic base.
Project Methods
A combination of pedigree, back-cross and single-seed descent breeding methodologies will be employed to combine characteristics developed in single-trait nurseries with objectives for fiber quality, yield enhancement, verticillium wilt, bacterial blight, seedling disease, and root-knot nematode resistance, cold tolerance and drought tolerance. Unique screening methods developed in greenhouse facilities will be employed at critical stages during the breeding process. Available, but not yet routinely utilized, enhanced fiber quality measurements (AFIS, NIR) will be exploited to select for important fiber development characteristics, especially fiber maturity, which indirectly influences fiber length distribution, strength, elongation and spinning performance. Screening methods will be developed to evaluate germplasm collections (USDA, CIRAD, Uzbek) for lines tolerant to nematodes, seedling disease, verticillium wilt, bacterial blight, and abiotic stresses such as drought and salinity. As promising lines are identified, introgression strategies will be developed to incorporate traits important to Southern High Plains cotton production into adapted breeding lines and cultivars. Widespread, multi-location, 3-tiered replicated (Lattice, RCBD) testing will be utilized on finished lines to evaluate the success of the breeding process. Yield data, combined with results from the screening process, will be made available to interested parties, especially those involved in developing cotton seed varieties for the region. New developments in trait screening techniques will be published for the academic and research audience.

Progress 05/08/09 to 05/07/14

Outputs
Target Audience: Public cotton breeders and cotton research scientists involved in enhancing genetic diversity; cotton breeders and scientists interested in new fiber measurment technology and verticillium wilt assays; companies involved in cotton seed breeding and development, especially with business interests in the Southern High Plains; cotton producers on the Southern High Plains; and organic cotton producers. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Five graduate students have received a Ph. D. and one graduate student has received an M. S. degree. Three post-doctoral research associates, one visiting scientist from Burkina Faso, andfour undergraduate internshave participated in training opportunity provided by the project.Meetings and professional development opportunities for participants and students partially supported by the project include Beltwide Cotton Research Conference, Southwest Entomology, National Association of Plant Breeders, American Society of Agronomy, UC-Davis Plant Breeding Academy, Keystone Symposium, IRRI Rice Research to Production short course, International Cotton Breeder Tour (host in 2013), and West Texas Agricultural Chemical Institute. Project Leader participated in Texas A&M AgriLife Advanced Leaders training program, and was appointed to the National Genetic Resources Advisory Council. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Results from strains test are summarized and reported annually to the Plains Cotton Improvement Program board of directors. Promising results are also shared upon request at meetings with interested seed company and technology providers. Specific research projects are reported at the Beltwide Cotton Research Conference and at Cotton Incorporated Texas State Support Committee board meetings. A field tour with invited producers and seed company personnel was conducted in 2009 and 2012. Project team organized and hosted the 2013 Cotton Breeder Tour attended by more than 120 people involved in cotton breeding and development from U. S. and several other countries. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Nothing Reported

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? A sensitive DNA-based real-time RT-PCR assay was developed for the detection of the Verticillium dahliae in infected cotton plants. The utility of this assay was clearly demonstrated in a study of Verticillium-resistant (partial) Pima S7; a sensitive variety (Lankart 57) and partially resistant Upland cotton line developed in this program, and an invention disclosure filed with TTU Office of Technology Commercialization.Project resources for developing improved breeding lines contributed to the successful development of a verticillium wilt assay that can efficiently and effectively screen many more breeding lines in a shorter time than previously possible .Results from fiber quality studies on elongation and work-to-break and on fiber measurement selection tools show that improvements in related properties of elongation and length distribution can impact fiber uniformity, the one fiber property in which improvements have not been seen in High Plains cotton production due to variable fiber maturity. Identification of appropriate measurements and combination of fiber property selection strategies developed from this research can enable High Plains cotton to compete more favorably in high quality yarn applications. A new root-knot nematode line was disclosed that offers partial resistance in combination with boll type suitable for Texas High Plains production. Screening techniques developed for insect resistance resulted in potential new thrips resistant variety development. These 2 developments (root-knot nematode tolerance and thrips resistance) address a potential threat to U S cotton production, the loss of aldicarb. Resources available from the project for variety and strain testing resulted in characterization of lines available in the U. S. Germplasm Collection that could be useful for further germplasm improvement. Results from specific research on fiber quality, focusing on correlation of length uniformity to fiber maturity, resulted in funding from the Cotton Foundation. It was demonstrated that yarn strength could be improved by 50% selecting for improved lengthuniformity, and that fiber maturity could be indirectly impacted. Digital phenotypic characterization of the germplasm collection, addressing the objective to expand the genetic base of cotton, helped establish a digital module in the new CottonGen database, Project has targeted cotton quality improvement in fiber length and strength since 1983. In 30 years, fiber length has improved in the region to just under 1 inch to over 1.15 inches. In the same time period, average fiber strength has improved from 23 to near 30 grams/tex. This has allowed cotton produced in Texas High Plains to remain competitive in the global market while exports have gone from less than 10% to over 80%. Texas-grown cotton still produces more waste from short fiber content, attributable to breakage correlated with fiber maturity distribution. Results from specific research on fiber quality, focusing on correlation of length uniformity to fiber maturity, resulted in funding from the Cotton Foundation in 2012. It was demonstrated that yarn strength could be improved by 50% selecting for improved length uniformity, and that fiber maturity could be indirectly impacted. New lines developed with improved fiber elongation were included in spinning research in 2012. Elongation, in combination with fiber strength, comprises the energy required to break fiber. These lines resulted in 71.5% increase in yarn breaking elongation and 93.3% increase in yarn work-to-break over current commercial cultivars. In addition, research showed fiber elongation is moderately heritable; the negative correlation between fiber strength and fiber elongation can be broken through targeted selection; improving fiber elongation can decrease short fiber content, improve yarn tenacity properties, and lessen yarn imperfections.

Publications

  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Awaiting Publication Year Published: 2014 Citation: Morgan, V. M., J. K. Dever, and C. M. Kelly. 2014. Yield adjustment for small plot yield trials on the High Plains of Texas. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Awaiting Publication Year Published: 2014 Citation: Kothari, N., S. Hague, E. F. Hequet, and J. K. Dever. 2014. Diallel analysis for cotton fiber standard fineness. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Awaiting Publication Year Published: 2014 Citation: Kelly, C. M., J. K. Dever, and E. F. Hequet. 2014. Integrated approach to breeding for enhanced utilization of West Texas Cotton. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Zeng, L., W. R. Meredith, B. T. Campbell, J. K. Dever, J. Zhang, K. Glass, A. Jones, G. Myers, and F. Bourland. 2014. Genotype X environment interaction effects on lint yield of cotton cultivars across major regions of the U. S. cotton belt. Journal of Cotton Science 18(1): 75-84.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Ng, E-H., C. W. Smith, E. Hequet, S. Hague and J. Dever. 2014. Generation means analysis for fiber elongation in upland cotton. Crop Science 54(4):
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Accepted Year Published: 2014 Citation: Hinze, L., P. Horn, N. Kothari, J. Frelichowski, J. K. Dever, K. Chapman, and R. Percy. 2014. Non-destructive measurements of cottonseed nutritional trait diversity in the US National Cotton Germplasm Collection. Crop Science
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Accepted Year Published: 2014 Citation: Kothari, N., J. K. Dever, S. Hague and E. F. Hequet. 2014. Evaluating intra plant cotton fiber variability. Crop Science
  • Type: Book Chapters Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Percy, R. G., J. E. Frelichowski, M. D. Arnold, T. B. Campbell, J. K. Dever, D. D. Fang, L. L. Hinze, D. Main, M. A. Sheehan, M. Ulloa, J. Yu, and J. Yu. 2014. The National US Cotton Germplasm Collection  its Contents, Preservation, Characterization and Evaluation, Chapter 7 (pp. 167-201) in World Cotton Germplasm Resources, edited by Ibrokhim Y. Abdurakhomonov. InTech Publishing.
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Dever, J. K., V. Morgan, M. S. Kelley, T. A. Wheeler, H. Flippin, V. Mendoza, and A. Cranmer. 2014. Cotton performance tests in the High Plains and Trans-Pecos areas of Texas, 2013. Texas A&M AgriLife Research Technical Report 14-3.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Awaiting Publication Year Published: 2014 Citation: Stelly, D. M., D. A. Raska, S. Saha, J. N. Jenkins, J. C. McCarty, J. K. Dever, M. D. Arnold, H. D. Flippin, and D. C. Jones. 2014. Facilitating the use of wild species germplasm for cotton improvement via CS lines. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Awaiting Publication Year Published: 2014 Citation: Flippin, H. D., J. K. Dever, M. A. Sheehan, V. M. Morgan, and M. S. Kelley. 2014. Evaluation of cotton cultivars for differential responses to salinity stress. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Awaiting Publication Year Published: 2014 Citation: Hinze, L., P. Horn, N. Kothari, J. Dever, J. Frelichowski, K. D. Chapman, and R. Percy. 2014. Relationships among oil content, protein content and seed size of Gossypium accessions in the U. S. National Cotton Germplasm Collection. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.


Progress 01/01/13 to 09/30/13

Outputs
Target Audience: Target audience includes public cotton breeders and cotton research scientists involved in enhancing genetic diversity; companies involved in cotton seed breeding and development; cotton producers on the Southern High Plains; and organic cotton producers. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Jane Dever, Mark Arnold, Carol Kelly, Valerie Morgan, Heather Flippin, Dylan Wann, Neha Kothari and Ryan Gregory attended professional development sessions at the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conference. Dylan Wann attended American Society of Agronomy meetings. Carol Kelly, Dylan Wann and Trey Cutts attended a short course on How to Manage a Breeding Program at University of California - Davis. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Results from strains test are summarized and reported annually to the Plains Cotton Improvement Program board of directors. Promising results are also shared upon request at meetings with interested seed company and technology providers. Specific research projects are reported at the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conference and at Cotton Incorporated Texas State Support Committee board meetings. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? A new set of accessions from the USDA national cotton gernplasm collection will be increased in the greenhouse. Nurseries addressing objectives will be established and new populations from each objective will be created.Seed will be increased on asub-set of the cotton germplasm collection to survey variability of abiotic stress response. Approximately 70 new potential strains will be evaluated in mult-location performance testing.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Ninety-six potential new breeding strains were performance-tested at 6 locations in 2013. Advanced strains (20) and Intermediate strains (30) were tested in irrigated and dryland trials at Lubbock and Lamesa, and irrigated trials at Halfway; Preliminary strains (30), were tested in irrigated trials at Lubbock, Lamesa, and Halfway; strains for organic production (16) were tested in irrigated trials at Meadow and Halfway. Forty new breeding populations were created for root-knot nematode resistance (8), Verticillium wilt resistance (8), bacterial blight resistance (8) abiotic stress (8), and fiber quality (8). Individual plant selections from various nurseries (except Pecos abiotic stress and host plant resistance not yet selected) totaled 1,945; 337 F2 selections, 204 F3, 327 abiotic stress, 101 fiber quality, 277 Verticillium wilt, 87 genetic diversity, and 122 root-knot nematode and. New strains selected so far totaled 61; 13 fiber quality, 18 abiotic stress, 7 bacterial blight, 5 Verticillium wilt, 3 root-knot nematode and 15 genetic diversity. Specific research for fiber quality included second year spinning studies on elongation lines show improving elongation holding other properties constant improves yarn elongation, tenacity and work-to-break and results in 3% less short fiber content waste in processing. An additional 50 lines from germplasm collections were increased for screening in 2013, resulting in over 1050 lines available for research on salt tolerance, thrips resistance, drought tolerance and phenotypic characterization.

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Dever, J. K., T. A. Wheeler, and C. M. Kelly. 2013. Registration of CA 4002 cotton germplasm line partially resistant to Verticillium wilt. Journal of Plant Registrations. 7(2):209-215.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Kelly, C. M., E. F. Hequet, and J. K. Dever. 2013. Breeding for improved yarn quality: modifying fiber length distribution. Industrial Crops and Products. 42(March): 386-396.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Martini, X., J. Gustqafson, N. Kincy, K. Vaughn, J. K. Dever, and C. Nansen. 2013. Positive association between thrips and spider mites in seedling cotton. Agriculture and Forest Entomology online: do1:10.1111/afe.12004.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Eng, E. H., K. Jernigan, W. Smith, E. Hequet, J. K. Dever, S. Hague, and A. Ibrahim. 2013. Stability analysis of upland cotton in Texas. Crop Science. 53(4): 1347-1355.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Gao, X., M. Li, F. Li, A. S. Kianinejad, J. K. Dever, T. A. Wheeler, Z. Li, P. He, and L. Shan. 2013. Cotton GhBAK1 mediates Verticillium wilt resistance and cell death. Journal of Integrative Plant Biology online: doi: 10.1111/jipb.12064.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Niu, G., D. Rodriguez, J. K. Dever and J. Zhang. 2013. Growth and physiological responses of five cotton genotypes to sodium chloride and sodium sulfate saline water irrigation. The Journal of Cotton Science. 17: 233-244.
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Dever, J. K., T. A. Wheeler, M. S. Kelley, C. Hardin, L. Schoenhals, and V. Morgan. 2013. Cotton performance tests in the High Plains and Trans-Pecos areas of Texas, 2012. Texas A&M AgriLife Research Technical Report 13-2.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Hague, S., C. W. Smith, J. K. Dever, and K. Rathore. 2013. Enhancing cotton seed qualities through plant breeding. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Castillo, M. N., J. K. Dever, and D. Auld. 2013. Screening and evaluating responses to NaCl in cotton, G. hirsutum. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Kelly, C. M. and J. K. Dever. 2013. Breeding efforts to improve fiber maturity: addressing fiber length uniformity. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Wann, D. Q., J. K. Dever, M. N. Parajulee, M. D. Arnold, and H. D. Flippen. 2013. Thrips resistance and field performance of advanced cotton breeding lines and cultivars under organic management. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Osorio-Marin, J. and J. K. Dever. 2013. Improvement of work-to-break characteristics of cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) fibers and yarn through breeding and selection for improved fiber elongation. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Cutts, G. S. and J. K. Dever. 2013. Inheritance and stability of mutation-based herbicide tolerance in cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.). Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Castillo, M. N., P. Payton, and J. K. Dever. 2013. A survey of abiotic stress tolerance variability in cotton germplasm. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Harris, B. E. and J. K. Dever. 2013. Design and construction of a delinting facility for a public breeding program. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Morgan, V. M., J. K. Dever, and C. M. Kelly. 2013. Yield adjustment for small plot trials on the Texas High Plains. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Sheehan, M. N., J. K. Dever, M. D. Arnold, M. N. Castillo, J. L. Mabry, L. W. Wells, H. D. Flippin, and D. Q. Wann. 2013. Progress in screening the U.S. germplasm collection for diversity. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Flippin, H. D., J. K. Dever, M. D. Arnold, and D. Q. Wann. 2013. Greenhouse thrips screening to support development of cultivars for organic cotton production. 2013. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Oliver, C. T., G. L. Ritchie, D. Auld, J. K. Dever, and J. M. Rieff. 2013. Lint yield and yield components of cotton cultivars from four decades when grown under three water regimes. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Vandiver, M. R., R. B. Shrestha, J. K. Dever, M. D. Arnold, and M. N. Parajulee. 2013. Managing thrips using organically approved insecticides. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Parajulee, M. N., R. B. Shrestha, M. R. Vandiver, D. Q. Wann, J. K. Dever, and M. D. Arnold. 2013. Evaluation of organic pesticides for western flower thrips management in seedling cotton: effect of plant parameters. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Castillo, N., G. Peterson, J. K. Dever, D. Auld, M. Stelter, and K. Anaya. 2013. Phenotyping salt tolerance responses in cotton, sorghum, and castor. Proceedings of the Plant Abiotic Stress and Sustainable Agriculture Conference. Keystone Symposium.


Progress 01/01/12 to 12/31/12

Outputs
OUTPUTS: One hundred twenty-seven potential new breeding strains were performance-tested at 8 locations in 2012. Advanced strains (20) were tested in irrigated and dryland trials at Lubbock, and irrigated trials at Halfway, Lamesa and Pecos; Intermediate Strains (30) were tested in irrigated and dryland trials at Lubbock, and irrigated trials at Halfway and Pecos; Preliminary Strains (30), were tested in irrigated trials at Lubbock, Lamesa, Halfway and Pecos; improved elongation lines (25) were tested in irrigated trials at Lubbock and Halfway; strains for organic production were tested in dryland test in Lamesa and irrigated tests in Lubbock and Idalou; and improved length distributions strains (6) were tested in an irrigated trial in Lamesa. Forty-four new breeding populations were created for root-knot nematode resistance (7), Verticillium wilt resistance (8), bacterial blight resistance (10) abiotic stress (9), and fiber quality (10). Individual plant selections from various nurseries totaled 1,968; 202 F2 selections, 785 abiotic stress, 170 fiber, 259 Verticillium wilt, 128 genetic diversity, 209 root-knot nematode and 215 host plant resistance. New strains selected totaled 36; 6 fiber quality, 5 abiotic stress, 3 bacterial blight, 5 Verticillium wilt, 15 root-knot nematode and 3 thrips resistant. Specific research for fiber quality included spinning studies on elongation lines that resulted in up to 90% improvement in yarn work-to-break, and initiation of length distribution and maturity selection studies. An additional 41 lines from germplasm collections were increased for screening in 2012, resulting in over 1000 lines available for research on salt tolerance, thrips resistance, drought tolerance and phenotypic characterization. PARTICIPANTS: Lyndon Schoenhals, Senior Research Associate, worked on the project assisted by Mark Arnold, Research Associate (entomologist - thrips); Valerie Morgan, Research Associate and Statistician; Carol Kelly, Assistant Research Scientist (fiber quality); Natalia Castillo, Research Assistant (salt tolerance); Jimmy Mabry, Research Assistant (drought tolerance); Monica Sheehan, Research Assistant (genetic diversity); Leslie Wells, Research Assistant and Greenhouse Manager; Heather Flippen, Technician (thrips screening); and Brad Harris, Technician (disease screening). Juliana Osorio completed Ph. D. dissertation on fiber elongation; Dylan Quincy Wann is a Ph. D. candidate working on cultivar development for organic production; and Trey Cutts is a Ph. D. candidate and Monsanto Plant Breeding Fellow working on non-transgenic herbicide tolerance.Collaborators include Cotton Research Pathologist Terry Wheeler; Molecular Geneticists Thea Wilkins and Robert Wright, Plant Breeders Dick Auld, Steve Hague and Wayne Smith; Physiologists Bobby McMichael, Carlos Fernandez and Paxton Payton; Entomologists Megha Parajulee and Monti Vandiver; and Fiber Scientists Eric Hequet and Noureddine Abidi. Partner organizations include Plains Cotton Growers, Plains Cotton Improvement Program, Texas Organic Cotton Marketing Cooperative, Texas Department of Agriculture, Cotton Foundation, Ogallala Aquifer Project, National Crop Insurance Services and Cotton Incorporated. Jane Dever, Mark Arnold, Carol Kelly, Valerie Morgan, Heather Flippen, Trey Cutts, Juliana Osorio, Brad Harris, Dylan Wann and Natalia Castillo attended professional development sessions at the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conference. Monica Sheehan attended Southwest Entomology meetings and Dylan Wann and Juliana Osorio attended American Society of Agronomy meetings. TARGET AUDIENCES: Target audience includes public cotton breeders and cotton research scientists involved in enhancing genetic diversity; companies involved in cotton seed breeding and development; cotton producers on the Southern High Plains; and organic cotton producers. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period.

Impacts
Project has targeted cotton quality improvement in fiber length and strength since 1983. In 30 years, fiber length has improved in the region to just under 1 inch to over 1.15 inches. In the same time period, average fiber strength has improved from 23 to near 30 grams/tex. This has allowed cotton produced in Texas High Plains to remain competitive in the global market while exports have gone from less than 10% to over 80%. Texas-grown cotton still produces more waste from short fiber content, attributable to breakage correlated with fiber maturity distribution. Results from specific research on fiber quality, focusing on correlation of length uniformity to fiber maturity, resulted in funding from the Cotton Foundation in 2012. It was demonstrated that yarn strength could be improved by 50% selecting for improved length uniformity, and that fiber maturity could be indirectly impacted. New lines developed with improved fiber elongation were included in spinning research in 2012. Elongation, in combination with fiber strength, comprises the energy required to break fiber. These lines resulted in 71.5% increase in yarn breaking elongation and 93.3% increase in yarn work-to-break over current commercial cultivars. In addition, research showed fiber elongation is moderately heritable; the negative correlation between fiber strength and fiber elongation can be broken through targeted selection; improving fiber elongation can decrease short fiber content, improve yarn tenacity properties, and lessen yarn imperfections.

Publications

  • Osorio, J. and J. K. Dever. 2012. Improvement of Cotton (Gossypium hirsutum) Fiber Spinning Quality through Selection and Inheritance of Fiber Elongation. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Cutts, G. S., J. K. Dever and D. Auld. 2012. Parental Selection for Initiation of Segregation Analysis and Improvement of Mutation-Based Herbicide Resistance in Cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.). Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Wann, D. Q., J. K. Dever, M. D. Arnold and H. D. Flippen. 2012. Field Evaluation of Advanced Breeding Lines for Organic Cotton Production. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Shrestha, R. B., W. O. McSpadden, J. K. Dever, M. D. Arnold, D. L. Kerns and M. N. Parajulee. 2012. Potential of Organic Pesticides for Western Flower Thrips Management in Seedling Cotton: Effect of Plant Parameters. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Wann, D. Q., J. K. Dever, M. N. Parajulee, M. D. Arnold and H. D. Flippen. 2012. Cultivars and IPM Systems for Organic Cotton Production: Distribution of Thrips Resistance in Multiple Generations of Cotton. Proceedings of the American Society of Agronomy Annual Meeting. ASA-CSSA-SSSA.
  • Hinze, L. L., J. K. Dever and R. G. Percy. 2012. Genetic Variation Among and Within Improved Cultivars in the U. S. Germplasm Collection. Crop Science. 52(1): 222-230.
  • Kelly, C. M., E. R. Hequet and J. K. Dever. 2012. Interpretation of AFIS and HVI fiber property measurements in breeding for cotton fiber quality improvement. Journal of Cotton Science. 16(1):1-16.
  • Chawla, S., Woodward, J. E., Wheeler, T. A., and J. K. Dever. 2012. Effect of cultivar selection on soil population of Verticillium dahliae and wilt development in cotton. Online. Plant Health Progress doi:10.1094/PHP-2012-0824-02-RS.
  • Arnold, M. D., J. K. Dever, M. N. Parajulee, S. C. Carroll and H. D. Flippen. 2012. A simple and effective method for applying thrips feeding pressure to cotton seedlings in a greenhouse environment. Southwest Entomologist, 37(3), 305-313.
  • Dever, J. K., T. A. Wheeler, M. S. Kelley, D. Kerns, M. E. Riley, A. Cranmer, L. Schoenhals and V. Morgan. 2012. Cotton Performance Tests in the Texas High Plains and Trans-Pecos Areas of Texas, 2011. Texas AgriLife Research Technical Report No. 12-2
  • Dever, J. K., T. A. Wheeler, C. M. Kelly, L. Schoenhals and V. Morgan. 2012. Results of the Root-Knot Nematode Cotton Variety Performance Test at Lamesa, AG-CARES, 2011. Texas AgriLife Research Technical Report 12-1.
  • Vandiver, M., D. L. Kerns, B. Baugh, M. N. Parajulee, J. K. Dever and M. D. Arnold. 2012. Managing Thrips Using Organically Approved Insecticides. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Wong, J., S. Hague, J. Osorio, J. Dever and H. Zhang. 2012. Identification of SSR Markers Associated with Fiber Elongation. Proceedings of the American Society of Agronomy Annual Meeting. ASA-CSSA-SSSA.
  • Anders, R. K., J. K. Dever, M. Zarnstorff. 2012. Cotton Plant Damage Recovery Comparison between Different Variety Types in a Short Growing Season. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.


Progress 01/01/11 to 12/31/11

Outputs
OUTPUTS: Seventy potential new breeding strains were performance-tested at 5 locations in 2011. Advanced strains (28)were tested in irrigated and dryland trials at Lubbock, and irrigated trials at Halfway, Lamesa and Pecos; Intermediate Strains (18) were tested in irrigated and dryland trials at Lubbock, and irrigated trials at Halfway and Pecos; Preliminary Strains (24), were tested in irrigated trials at Lubbock, Lamesa, Halfway and Pecos.New breeding populations were created for root-knot nematode resistance (10), Verticillium wilt resistance (8), bacterial blight resistance (4)drought tolerance (8), fiber quality (8) and salinity tolerance (7); resulting in 45 new populations. Individual plant selections from various nurseries totaled 1,819; 96 Pecos, 71 salt, 866 fiber, 123 Verticillium wilt, 163 bacterial blight, 169 drought, 117 root-knot nematode and 214 host plant resistance. New strains selected totaled 34, and 12 new crossing sources were identified. Specific research for fiber quality included development of 8 new lines with divergent elongation for spinning studies, and heritability studies for fiber elongation. An additional 200 lines from germplasm collections were increased for screening in 2011, bringing to over 1000 lines available for research on salt tolerance, thrips resistance, drought tolerance and phenotypic characterization. Results from strains test are summarized and reported annually to the Plains Cotton Improvement Program board of directors. Promising results are also shared upon request at meetings with interested seed company and technology providers. Specific research projects are reported at the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conference and at Cotton Incorporated Texas State Support Committee board meetings. Internal disclosures with the Texas A&M Office of Technology and Commercialization included Disclosure 3387 - for root-knot nematode tolerant line 10-17-112. PARTICIPANTS: Lyndon Schoenhals, Senior Research Associate, worked on the project assisted by Mark Arnold, Research Associate (entomologist - thrips), Valerie Morgan, Research Assistant and Statistician, Carol Kelly, Post-doctoral Research Assistant (fiber quality), Natalia Castillo, Research Assistant (salt tolerance), Jimmy Mabry, Research Assistant (drought tolerance), Monica Sheehan, Research Assistant (genetic diversity), Leslie Wells, Greenhouse Manager, Heather Elkins, Technician (thrips screening), Brad Harris, Technician (disease screening) and Reagan Anders, Technician. Reagan Anders is an M.S. student working on physiological recovery from weather damage; Juliana Osorio is a Ph. D. candidate working on fiber elongation; Dylan Quincy Wann is a Ph. D. candidate working on cultivar development for organic production;and Trey Cutts is a Ph. D. candidate and Monsanto Plant Breeding Fellow working on non-transgenic herbicide tolerance. Collaborators include Cotton Research Pathologist Terry Wheeler; Molecular Geneticists Thea Wilkins and Robert Wright, Plant Breeders Dick Auld, Steve Hague and Wayne Smith; Physiologists Bobby McMichael and Paxton Payton; Entomologists Megha Parajulee and David Kerns; and Fiber Scientists Eric Hequet and Noureddine Abidi. Partner organizations include Plains Cotton Improvement Program, Texas Organic Cotton Marketing Cooperative, Texas Department of Agriculture Food and Fiber Research Grant Program and Cotton Incorporated. Jane Dever, Mark Arnold, Carol Kelly, Valerie Morgan, Reagan Anders, Trey Cutts, Juliana Osorio, Brad Harris and Natalia Castillo attended the Cotton Inc.-sponsored Cotton Breeder Tour. Jane Dever, Juliana Osorio, Dylan Wann, Reagan Anders and Trey Cutts attended professional development sessions at the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conference. TARGET AUDIENCES: Target audience includes public cotton breeders and cotton research scientists involved in enhancing genetic diversity; companies involved in cotton seed breeding and development; cotton producers on the Southern High Plains; and organic cotton producers. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period.

Impacts
A new root-knot nematode line was disclosed that offers partial resistance in combination with boll type suitable for Texas High Plains production. Screening techniques developed for insect resistance resulted in potential new thrips resistant variety development. These 2 developments (root-knot nematode tolerance and thrips resistance) address a potential threat to U S cotton production, the loss of aldicarb. Resources available from the project for variety and strain testing resulted in characterization of lines available in the U. S. Germplasm Collection that could be useful for further germplasm improvement. Results from specific research on fiber quality, focusing on correlation of length uniformity to fiber maturity, resulted in funding from the Cotton Foundation. It was demonstrated that yarn strength could be improved by 50% selecting for improved length uniformity, and that fiber maturity could be indirectly impacted. Digital phenotypic characterization of the germplasm collection, addressing the objective to expand the genetic base of cotton, helped establish a digital module in the new CottonGen database,

Publications

  • Dever, J. K., T. A. Wheeler, R. K. Boman, D. Kerns, M. Foster, A. Cranmer, L. Schoenhals and V. Morgan (2011). Cotton Performance Tests in the Texas High Plains and Trans-Pecos Areas of Texas, 2010. Texas AgriLife Research Technical Report No. 11-2.
  • Dever, J. K., C. M. Kelly, L. Schoenhals and V. Morgan (2011). Results of the Sub-Surface Drip Irrigated Uniform Cotton Variety Performance Test at Lamesa, AG-CARES, 2010. Texas AgriLife Research Technical Report 11-1.
  • Dever, J. K., C. M. Kelly, L. Schoenhals and V. Morgan. 2011. Results of the Dryland Uniform Cotton Variety Performance Test at Lamesa, AG-CARES, 2010. Texas AgriLife Research Technical Report 11-1.
  • Dever, J. K., T. A. Wheeler, C. M. Kelly, L. Schoenhals and V. Morgan (2011). Results of the Root-Knot Nematode Cotton Variety Performance Test at Lamesa, AG-CARES, 2010. Texas AgriLife Research Technical Report 11-1.
  • Myers, G. O., F. Bourland, P. W. Chee, J. K. Dever, S. Hague, C. W. Smith, J. Zhang, E. F. Hequet and D. C. Jones (2011). Advances in High Quality Conventional Cottons. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Castillo, M. N., J. K. Dever and D. L. Auld (2011). A Hydroponic Approach to Evaluate Responses to Salinity Stress in Cotton. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Shields, E. M., J. K. Dever, D. L. Auld and D. Hess (2011). The Evaluation and Inheritance of Several Traits Associated with Lint Percent in Cotton. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Osorio, J. and J. K. Dever (2011). Improvement of Cotton (Gossypium hirsutum) Fiber Spinning Quality Through Selection and Inheritance of Fiber Elongation. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Dever, J. K. and M. A. Sheehan (2011). Update of Cotton Race-Stock Screening and Phenotypic Characterization. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Hinze, L., J.K. Dever and R. Percy (2011). Genetic Diversity and Agronomic Potential of Cultivars Within the U. S. Cotton Collection. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Kelly, C. M., J. K. Dever and E. F. Hequet (2011). Length Distribution as a Breeding Tool to Improve Multiple Fiber Properties. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Fernandez, C. J., J. C. Correa, T. J. Jenschke, J. K. Dever and S. Hague (2011). Comparison of Lysimetric Whole-Plant Water Use Among Cotton Genotypes. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Anders, R. and J. K. Dever (2011). Simulated Hail Recovery Comparison Between Stripper and Picker Varieties of Upland Cotton. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Hinze, L., R. Kohel, B. T. Campbell, J. Dever, D. Fang, J. Yu, J. Frelichowski, B. Scheffler, M. Gore and R. Percy (2011). U. S. Cotton Germplasm Collection Characterization Efforts. Proceedings of the National Association of Plant Breeders Annual Conference. May 23-25, College Station, TX.
  • Morgan, V. M., C. M. Kelly and J. K. Dever (2011). Maintaining Purity in a Conventional Breeding Program. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.


Progress 01/01/10 to 12/31/10

Outputs
OUTPUTS: One hundred potential new breeding lines and checks were performance tested at 5 locations in 2010; 20 Advanced, 30 Intermediate and 40 Preliminary. The entries included lines selected for improved fiber quality, verticillium wilt and bacterial blight resistance, productivity under drought conditions and yield. Six lines (2 verticillium wilt resistant, 2 drought tolerant and 2 with improved fiber quality) from 2009 performance testing were evaluated in PVP trials for potential release. Results of all performance testing are summarized and presented annually to the Plains Cotton Improvement Committee of the Plains Cotton Improvement Program. Germplasm lines with potential impact are disclosed through the Texas A&M Office of Technology and Commercialization. The number of new populations planned for 2010 was decreased because of stand establishment problems but included 4 for fiber quality, 2 for verticillium wilt, 2 for root-knot nematode, 1 for bacterial blight, 4 for drought tolerance and 2 for abiotic stress. Fifty-four fiber quality selections, 219 verticillium wilt selections, 101 bacterial blight selections, 186 root-knot nematode selections, 87 drought tolerant selections, 65 salt tolerant selections, 38 abiotic stress selections, 30 short season production selections and 115 selections representing genetic diversity enhancement were advanced in progeny row evaluation. Ninety-eight of those selections represent F2:3 lines for thrips resistance that can be evaluated for potential performance testing under organic production conditions. Single seed descent F2 boll samples for 103 new populations were harvested and will be selected in the F3 generation. Lines selected for performance testing in 2011 include 3 fiber quality, 1 verticillium wilt, 13 bacterial blight, 3 nematode, 3 drought, and 1 abiotic stress. Six lines developed by selection under drought stress, or selection under optimal conditions for physiological characteristics related to drought tolerance, were evaluated under dryland and drip irrigation to provide more understanding of best breeding methodologies to employ for improving drought tolerance of cotton developed for the Southern High Plains. Twenty-two lines representing 11 pairs with similar fiber properties except low and high elongation will be increased and used to evaluate spinning performance and fiber property correlations. Crosses with herbicide-tolerance lines developed through chemical mutagenesis were made to study inheritance, efficacy and equivalency. Four-hundred ancestral cotton lines have been characterized for drought tolerance, 350 screened for thrips tolerance and 250 for salt tolerance in an ongoing effort to enhance genetic diversity. Phenotypic documentation by digital photography of over 800 ancestral accessions is expected to be added to the GRIN database for public access. PARTICIPANTS: Lyndon Schoenhals, Senior Research Associate, worked on the project assisted by Mark Arnold, Research Associate (entomologist - thrips), Valerie Morgan, Research Assistant and Statistician, Carol Kelly, Post-doctoral Research Assistant (fiber quality), Natalia Castillo, Research Assistant (salt tolerance), Jimmy Mabry, Research Assistant (drought tolerance), Monica Sheehan, Research Assistant (genetic diversity), Leslie Wells, Greenhouse Manager, Heather Elkins, Technician (thrips screening), Brad Harris, Technician (disease screening) and Reagan Anders, Technician. Reagan Anders is an M.S. student working on physiological recovery from weather damage; Natalia Castillo is a Ph. D. candidate and Cotton Incorporated Fellow; Juliana Osorio is a Ph. D. candidate working on fiber elongation; and Trey Cutts is a Ph. D. candidate and Monsanto Plant Breeding Fellow working on non-transgenic herbicide tolerance. Collaborators include Cotton Research Pathologist Terry Wheeler; Molecular Geneticists Thea Wilkins and Robert Wright, Plant Breeders Dick Auld, Steve Hague and Wayne Smith; Physiologist Bobby McMichael; Entomologists Megha Parajulee and David Kerns; and Fiber Scientists Eric Hequet and Noureddine Abidi. Partner organizations include Plains Cotton Improvement Program, Texas Organic Cotton Marketing Cooperative, Texas Department of Agriculture Food and Fiber Research Grant Program and Cotton Incorporated. Jane Dever, Mark Arnold, Carol Kelly, Valerie Morgan, Reagan Anders, Trey Cutts, Juliana Osorio and Natalia Castillo attended professional development sessions and the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conference. TARGET AUDIENCES: Target audience includes public cotton breeders and cotton research scientists involved in enhancing genetic diversity; companies involved in cotton seed breeding and development; cotton producers on the Southern High Plains; and organic cotton producers. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period.

Impacts
A new breeding line exhibiting verticillium wilt tolerance greater than currently available cultivars over two years of testing combines early maturity, competitive productivity, storm-tolerant bolls and improved fiber quality. Release of this breeding line will offer a better source of verticillium wilt resistance in a genetic background particularly suited to the Texas High Plains region. Collaborative research using verticillium wilt lines developed in this project resulted in 2 patent disclosures: Wilkins, Wheeler, Dever, 2010, TTU D - 726, "Assay for screening disease resistant germplasm"; and Wilkins, Wheeler, Dever, 2010, TTU D - 727, "Genetic enhancement of resistance to plant disease or bioengineering resistance to plant disease." Results from fiber quality studies on elongation and work-to-break and on fiber measurement selection tools show that improvements in related properties of elongation and length distribution can impact fiber uniformity, the one fiber property in which improvements have not been seen in High Plains cotton production due to variable fiber maturity. Identification of appropriate measurements and combination of fiber property selection strategies developed from this research can enable High Plains cotton to compete more favorably in high quality yarn applications. Selection of 3 new lines with excellent root-knot nematode tolerance in genetic backgrounds appropriate for High Plains cotton production is significant as the use of aldicarb, currently the only viable crop protection option for nematodes, is to be discontinued. Current cultivars with root-knot nematode resistance all have boll types vulnerable to storm loss in the Texas High Plains. The library of germplasm developed in this project allowed for the testing of root-knot nematode lines that possess correct characteristics for the growing region. Ancestral line screening identifies thrips tolerant material used to obtain additional funding for developing varieties for organic cotton production and a salt tolerant line for abiotic stress introgression.

Publications

  • Sheehan, M. A., J.K. Dever and M. D. Arnold. 2010. Phenotypic Documentation of Gossypium species from the US Cotton Germplasm Collection, USDA-ARS, Using Digital Photography. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Castillo, M. N. and J. K. Dever. 2010. A Hydroponic Approach to Evaluate Responses to Salinity Stress in Cotton. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Arnold, M. D., J. K. Dever, H. D. Elkins and M. A. Sheehan. 2010. Development of a Thrips Resistant Adapted Cotton Cultivar for the Texas High Plains: Screening, Crossing and Field Trials. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Dever, J. K., T. A. Wheeler, R. K. Boman, D. Kerns, M. Foster, D. Nesmith, L. Schoenhals and V. Morgan. 2010. Cotton Performance Tests in the Texas High Plains and Trnas-Pecos Areas of Texas, 2009. Texas AgriLife Research Technical Report No. 10-2.
  • Dever, J. K. "Cotton Breeding". 2010. Chapter 11, In Handbook of Natural Fibers: Volume 1, edited by Professor Ryszard Kozlowski.
  • Kelly, C. M., E. F. Hequet and J. K. Dever. 2010. Improving Cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) for Fiber and Yarn Quality. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Hinze, L., R. Percy and J. K. Dever. 2010. Molecular and Genetic Diversity of Cultivars in the US Cotton Germplasm Collection. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.


Progress 01/01/09 to 12/31/09

Outputs
OUTPUTS: Seventy-five breeding lines were performance-tested at 5 locations during 2009; 20 Advanced, 25 Intermediate and 30 Preliminary. One preliminary line, 0810706, will be disclosed as a potential germplasm release for improved verticillium wilt tolerance pending 2009 yield and fiber quality data. 549 plant selections from 15 populations for bacterial blight resistance, 522 plant selections from 54 populations for root-knot nematode tolerance and 151 plant selections from 40 populations for verticillium wilt resistance were identified in 2009. Projects to improve fiber elongation and maturity were initiated and preliminary results indicate high heritability for fiber elongation and correlation with fiber maturity and length distribution. Breeding lines developed using either only HVI-measured fiber properties, or HVI plus Advanced Fiber Information Systems technology subjected to spinning performance analysis indicate fewer combing noils with less waste during spinning, improved tensile properties, decreased yarn hairiness and decreased thin places in the yarn. Mapping populations for marker development for verticillium wilt resistance and drought tolerance were initiated in 2009. Results of all breeding line performance tests are summarized and presented to the Plains Cotton Improvement Program board meeting. Germplasm lines with potential impact are disclosed with the Office of Technology and Commercialization, Texas AgriLife Research. PARTICIPANTS: Lyndon Schoenhals, Research Associate, worked on the project during 2009 assisted by Valerie Morgan, Mark Arnold, Monica Sheehan, Jimmy Mabry, Natalia Castillo, Heather Elkins and Leslie Wells. Collaborators include Dick Auld, Robert Wright and Thea Wilkins, Texas Tech University; Eric Hequet and Noureddine Abidi, Fiber and Biopolymer Research Institute, Texas Tech University; David Stelly, C. Wayne Smith and Steve Hague, Texas A&M University; and Terry Wheeler, Texas AgriLife Research. Plains Cotton Improvement Program (Plains Cotton Growers), Cotton Incorporated Texas State Support Program and Texas Department of Agriculture Food and Fiber Research Grant Program are partner organizations. Two PhD graduate students were partially supported by the project: Carol Mason Kelly researching fiber quality selection methods graduated in December 2009 and Juliana Osorio-Marin is currently researching fiber elongation. Two M. S. students were partially supported by the project: Raina King graduated in May, 2009, and is employed by Dow Agrosciences and Reagan Anders is researching physiological recovery from simulated hail damage of different cotton genotypes. Jane Dever, Natalia Castillo, Valerie Morgan, Carol Kelly, Raina King, Reagan Anders and Mark Arnold attended professional development sessions at the Beltwide Cotton Conferences. TARGET AUDIENCES: Target audiences include cotton breeders, especially for new developments in fiber measurement technology and new screening assays for verticillium wilt; cotton producers on the Texas High Plains, especially for breeding lines disclosed through the Office of Technology and Commercialization; and cotton seed companies with business interest in the Texas High Plains. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period.

Impacts
A sensitive DNA-based real-time RT-PCR assay was developed for the detection of the Verticillium dahliae in infected cotton plants. The utility of this assay was clearly demonstrated in a study of Verticillium-resistant (partial) Pima S7; a sensitive variety (Lankart 57) and partially resistant Upland cotton line developed in this program, and an invention disclosure filed with TTU Office of Technology Commercialization. The pattern of the experimental line tracks with Pima S7, suggesting that this breeding line is possibly as resistant to the disease as Pima S-7. Results from the fiber quality selection method study employing AFIS technology show that with additional selection pressure from AFIS data, fiber quality can be set and not diminished in the F2 generation, leaving advanced generation advancement to concentrate on yield, disease and agronomic parameters. High correlation for fiber elongation between F2 selections and F3 lines indicated new calibration techniques for measuring fiber elongation can be very effective in breeding for improved tensile properties of cotton fiber. Project resources for developing improved breeding lines contributed to the successful development of a verticillium wilt assay that can efficiently and effectively screen many more breeding lines in a shorter time than previously possible.

Publications

  • Dever, J. K., T. A. Wheeler, R. K. Boman, D. Kerns, M. Foster, D. Nesmith, L. Schoenhals and V. Morgan. 2009. Cotton Performance Tests in the Texas High Plains and Trnas-Pecos Areas of Texas, 2008. Texas AgriLife Research Technical Report No. 09-2
  • Castillo, M. N. and J. K. Dever. 2009. Screening and Evaluating Wild Cotton for Salt Tolerance Characteristics. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • King, R. K., J. R. Gannaway and R. J. Wright. 2009. Physiological Mechanism of the Caducous Bract of Gossypium harknessii. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Abidi, N., E. F. Hequet, L. Cabrales, and J. K. Dever. 2009. FTIR Investigation of Secondary Cell Wall Development in Cotton Fibers. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Demant, C. A. R., D. Auld, S. Oswalt, E. Bechere, E and J. K. Dever. 2009. Evaluation of Short Season Cotton Genotypes on the High Plains of Texas. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Kelly, C. M., E. F. Hequet, J. R. Gannaway and J. K. Dever. 2009. Improving the Efficiency of the Breeding Programs for Fiber and Yarn Quality. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.
  • Price, K. A., R. J. Wright, D. Becker, J. K. Dever and J. R. Gannaway. 2009. Investigation of Methods to Evaluate Drought Tolerance among Selected Cotton Lines. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Production and Research Conferences. National Cotton Council of America.