ABSTRACT
Pulses including chickpea should be part of a healthy diet as they have several health promoting effects. Nevertheless, most studies on the bioactive or health-promoting properties of pulses have been carried out using soybean and only a few on chickpea. Giron-Calle et al. (2004) studied chickpea seeds and their cell growth-regulating properties, which may be responsible for anti-cancer effects. Chickpea seeds are a staple in the traditional diet of many Mediterranean, Asian, and South and Central American countries. In addition, chickpea seeds have industrial applications since they can be used for the preparation of protein concentrates and isolates. The seeds contain carotenoids such as β-carotene, cryptoxanthin, lutein and zeaxanthin in amounts above the engineered β-carotene-containing “golden rice” level. Thus, breeding for high carotenoid concentration in seeds is of nutritional, socio-economic, and economic importance. With regard to the genetics governing seed carotenoids in chickpea, Abbo et al. (2005) studied the relationship between seed weight and concentrations of β-carotene and lutein, in segregating progeny from a cross between an Israeli cultivar and wild Cicer reticulatum Ladiz. Seeds of the cross progeny varied with respect to their carotenoid concentration (heritability estimates ranged from 0.5 to 0.9), and a negative genetic correlation was found between mean seed weight and carotenoid concentration in the F3. To determine the loci responsible for genetic variation observed, the population was genotyped using 91 sequence tagged microsatellite site markers and two CytP450 markers to generate a genetic map consisting of nine linkage groups and a total length of 344.6 cM. Using quantitative data collected for β-carotene
and lutein concentrations and seed weight of the seeds of the F2 population, Abbo and associates were able to identify QTLs by interval mapping. At a LOD score of 2, four QTLs for β-carotene concentration, a single QTL for lutein concentration and three QTLs for seed weight were detected. These fi ndings may assist in improving the nutritional quality of chickpea.
