
Genetic interaction studies reveal superior performance of Rhizobium tropici CIAT899 on a range of diverse East African common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) genotypes
Abstract
The existence of genotype-by-strain (G L × G R ) interaction has implications for the expected stability of performance of legume inoculants and could represent both challenges and opportunities for improvement of nitrogen fixation. We find that significant genotype-by-strain interaction exists in common bean ( Phaseolus vulgaris L.) but that the strength and direction of this interaction depends on the growing environment used to evaluate biomass. Strong genotype and strain main effects, combined with a lack of predictable patterns in G L × G R , suggests that at best individual bean genotypes and strains can be selected for superior additive performance. The observation that the screening environment may affect experimental outcome of G L × G R means that identified patterns should be corroborated under more realistic conditions.
Citation
Gunnabo, A.H., Geurts, R., Wolde-meskel, E., Degefu, T., Giller, K.E. and Heerwaarden, J. van. 2019. Genetic interaction studies reveal superior performance of Rhizobium tropici CIAT899 on a range of diverse East African common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) genotypes. Applied and Environmental Microbiology 85(24):e01763-19.