Genetics of yield and fruit quality traits in bitter gourd (Momordica charantia L.) Vinay N. D1, Aamin Asima1,4, Behera Tusar K.1,3,*, Munshi Anilabh D.1, Jat Gograj S.1, Dey Shyam S.1, Ellur Ranjith K.2 1Division of Vegetable Science, ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi, India 2Division of Genetics, ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi, India 3ICAR-Indian Institute of vegetable Research, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India 4Directorate of Extension, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology, Jammu and Kashmir, India *Author For Correspondence: tusar@rediffmail.com
Online Published on 21 February, 2024. Abstract Utilization of genetic resources in crop breeding requires a basic understanding of the economic traits they are recognized for. Determination of genetics of traits helps to decide the appropriate breeding strategy for developing improved varieties. Segregating populations developed using Momordica charantia var. charantia and M. charantia var. muricate genotypes were used for generation mean analysis (GMA) to work out the gene effects controlling yield and fruit quality traits in bitter gourd. The study confirmed the role of non-allelic interactions and predominance of dominance gene effect (h) for most economic traits, which indicates the suitability of recurrent selection or heterosis breeding for the improvement of these traits. Segregation analysis indicated the single dominant gene control of fruit epicarp color, tubercle nature and fruit ridges. The predominance of complementary type of epistasis for most traits implies the genetic divergence between the parents used and the possibility of realizing a greater genetic gain in the breeding programme using these genetic resources. Top Keywords Dominance effect, Epistasis interaction, Generation mean analysis, Genetic studies, Momordica charantia. Top |