High-Density Genetic Map Construction and QTL Mapping of Leaf and Needling Traits in Ziziphus jujuba Mill

• Main Authors: Zhongtang Wang, Zhong Zhang, Haixia Tang, Qiong Zhang, Guangfang Zhou, Xingang Li
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2019-11-01
• Series: Frontiers in Plant Science
• Subjects: jujube (Ziziphus jujuba Mill.); GBS (genotyping by sequencing); genetic map; leaf and needling traits; QTL
• Online Access: https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fpls.2019.01424/full

The Chinese jujube (Ziziphus jujuba Mill., 2n = 2x = 24), one of the most popular fruit trees in Asia, is widely cultivated and utilized in China, where it is traditionally consumed as both a fresh and dried food resource. A high-density genetic map can provide the necessary framework for quantitative trait loci (QTL) analyses and map-based gene cloning and molecular breeding. In this study, we constructed a new high-density genetic linkage map via a genotyping-by-sequencing approach. For the consensus linkage map, a total of 3,792 markers spanning 2,167.5 cM were mapped onto 12 linkage groups, with an average marker interval distance of 0.358 cM. The genetic map anchored 301 Mb (85.7%) of scaffolds from the sequenced Z. jujuba “Junzao” genome. Based on this genetic map, 30 potential QTLs were detected, including 27 QTLs for leaf traits and 3 QTLs for needling length. This high-density genetic map and the identified QTLs for relevant agronomic traits lay the groundwork for functional genetic mapping, map-based cloning, and marker-assisted selection in jujube.