A Case for Crop Wild Relative Preservation and Use in Potato

Crop wild relatives (CWR) offer a critical resource to address food security needs by providing genetic diversity for crop improvement, leading to increased plasticity and productivity of farming systems. However, plant breeders typically have not developed systematic or comprehensive strategies for the characterization and use of CWR for cultivar improvement. Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) provides an excellent case study for the use of CWR germplasm in addressing global food security needs. International cooperation and collaboration are critical to collect, characterize, and use CWR in anticipation of future production needs. Both ex situ and in situ preservation of wild potato species are essential to assure a comprehensive conservation plan. Top priorities include a coordinated inventory of gene bank holdings followed by re-collection of CWR and new collection where gaps exist. Access to CWR genetic diversity will continue to be critical as breeders face the challenge of developing cultivars that fit into new production systems, especially in response to climate change. With the advent of the genomics era, new visions of germplasm use strategies are emerging. In addition to filling gaps in collections, it will be important to expand efforts to characterize and use potato CWR. A systematic and integrated strategy is needed to evaluate CWR in gene banks for traits to continue breeding progress. S.H. Jansky USDA-ARS, Dep. of Horticulture, Univ. of Wisconsin, 1575 Linden Dr., Madison, WI 53706-1590; H. Dempewolf, Global Crop Diversity Trust, Viale delle Terme di Caracalla, 00153 Rome, Italy; E.L. Camadro, Instituto Nacional de Tecnología AgropecuariaUniversidad Nacional de Mar del Plata and CONICET, C.C. 256, 7620 Balcarce, Argentina; R. Simon and M. Bonierbale, International Potato Center, P.O. Box 1558, La Molina, Lima 12, Peru; E. ZimnochGuzowska, Plant Breeding and Acclimatization InstituteNational Research Institute, Młochów Research Center, 19 Platanowa, 05-831 Młochów, Poland; D.A. Bisognin, Dep. of Plant Science, Federal Univ. of Santa Maria, CEP 97105-900, Camobi, Santa Maria, Brazil. Received 9 Nov. 2012. *Corresponding author (shelley.jansky@ars. usda.gov; [email protected]). Abbreviations: CWR, crop wild relatives; EBN, endosperm balance number; SGN, SOL Genomics Network. Published in Crop Sci. 53:746–754 (2013). doi: 10.2135/cropsci2012.11.0627 © Crop Science Society of America | 5585 Guilford Rd., Madison, WI 53711 USA All rights reserved. No part of this periodical may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Permission for printing and for reprinting the material contained herein has been obtained by the publisher.