Complementary Analysis and Implementation Plan for Conservation of Crop Wild Relatives in Finland.

Crop wild relatives (CWR) are valuable wild plant species that can be used as genetic resources providing adaptive traits to crop plants and therefore they play an important role in future food security. This paper describes in situ and ex situ conservation planning of CWR species in Finland and includes the following parts: (a) drafting of the national CWR priority list, (b) undertaking the in situ conservation gap analysis and (c) identifying ex situ conservation gaps and multi-species collecting sites for the CWR in Finland. As a result of the study, essential information was acquired, which will enhance future planning of active science-based practical conservation of CWR in Finland.

Differences in Dietary Intake and Vitamin and Mineral Status of Infants and Children on Dialysis Receiving Feeds or Eating Normal Food.

Objectives: Knowledge of the vitamin and mineral intake and status of children on dialysis is scarce. Guidelines suggest supplementation of water-soluble vitamins, but the need for supplementation of minerals is less clear. We evaluated vitamin and mineral intake and status of children on chronic dialysis in our center.

Oat Anther Culture and Use of DH-Lines for Genetic Mapping.

Possibility to make doubled haploids (DHs) from varying crossing populations is a useful tool for enhancing cultivar breeding, and a source of valuable material for genetic research. Oats is reported to be recalcitrant in anther culture with low response and genotype dependency. However, the best recoveries reported have reached up to 30 green regenerants per 100 isolated anthers, which clearly addresses the potential of this technique.

An updated doubled haploid oat linkage map and QTL mapping of agronomic and grain quality traits from Canadian field trials.

The first doubled haploid oat linkage map constructed at MTT Agrifood Research Finland was supplemented with additional microsatellites and Diversity Array Technology (DArT) markers to produce a map containing 1058 DNA markers and 34 linkage groups. The map was used to locate quantitative trait loci (QTLs) for 11 important breeding traits analyzed from Finnish and Canadian field trials. The new markers enabled most of the linkage groups to be anchored to the 'Kanota' × 'Ogle' oat ( Avena sativa L.

QTLs for important breeding characteristics in the doubled haploid oat progeny.

A homozygous mapping population, consisting of doubled haploid (DH) oat (Avena sativa L.) plants generated through anther culture of F1 plants from the cross between the Finnish cultivar 'Aslak' and the Swedish cultivar 'Matilda', was used to construct an oat linkage map. Ten agronomic and quality traits were analyzed in the DH plants from field trials in 2005 and 2006.

The first doubled haploid linkage map for cultivated oat.

To date, all linkage maps of hexaploid oat (Avena sativa L.) have been constructed using recombinant inbred lines (RILs). Doubled haploids (DHs), however, have the advantage over RILs of their comprehensive homozygosity.

A major gene for grain cadmium accumulation in oat (Avena sativa L.).

Cadmium (Cd) is a nonessential heavy metal that is highly toxic to living cells at very low concentrations. Most of the Cd in plants derives from soils. Owing to the large amounts consumed, cereals are the major source of dietary Cd, and Cd content in oat can exceed accepted limits.

Generation of SNP markers for short straw in oat (Avena sativa L.).

Short straw is a desired trait in oat germplasm (Avena sativa L.). Marker-assisted selection, a key tool for achieving this objective, is limited by the presence and number of available markers.

Extension of anther culture to several genotypes of cultivated oats.

 To improve plant regeneration from oat anther culture, the basic medium, hormonal supplements and genotype effect were studied. Six of the 14 genotypes tested regenerated plants. Cultivars Kolbu, Katri, Stout and naked oat Lisbeth produced green plants, cultivars Virma and line OT 257 only albinos.