Studies on Genetic Diversity for Seed Quality in Rapeseed (brassica Napus L.) Germplasm of Pakistan through near Infrared Spectroscopy and Principal Component Analysis

To optimize the exploitation of plant genetic resources for improvement of oilseed crops in Pakistan, seed quality characterization of germplasm of rapeseed is being executed at Nuclear Institute for Food and Agriculture (NIFA), Peshawar. The aim of this study was to determine the feasibility of using Near Infrared Spectroscopy (NIRS) to identify seed quality traits of oilseed rape germplasm. Seventeen hundred and fifty three (1753) accessions were collected from different sources across Pakistan. Whole seeds of each collection were scanned (1100-2500 nm) on NIR system 6500 in reflectance mode by spinning module. The NIRS spectrum can easily identify different quality characteristics of rapeseed germplasm by applying principle component analysis (PCA). Principle Component (PC) 1 showed better results in separating germplasm for protein, glucosinolate, oleic acid, and erucic acid. PC2 and PC3 identified oil content and linolenic acid respectively. The PCA score plots were clear to identify differences in seed quality of indigenous and exotic germpalsm. It can be concluded from this study that the NIRS and PCA techniques can be used to identify genetic diversity for quality traits of oilseed brassica germplasm.