A linkage map of the chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) genome based on recombinant inbred lines from a C. arietinum x C. reticulatum cross: localization of resistance genes for fusarium wilt races 4 and 5

An integrated molecular marker map of the chickpea genome was established using 130 recombinant inbred lines from a wide cross between a cultivar resistant to fusarium wilt caused by Fusarium oxysporum Schlecht. emend. Snyd. &. Hans f. sp. ciceri (Padwick) Snyd & Hans, and an accession of Cicer reticulatum (PI 489777), the wild progenitor of chickpea. A total of 354 markers were mapped on the RILs including 118 STMSs, 96 DAFs, 70 AFLPs, 37 ISSRs, 17 RAPDs, eight isozymes, three cDNAs, two SCARs and three loci that confer resistance against different races of fusarium wilt. At a LOD-score of 4.0, 303 markers cover 2077.9 cM in eight large and eight small linkage groups at an average distance of 6.8 cM between markers. Fifty one markers (14.4%) were unlinked. A clustering of markers in central regions of linkage groups was observed. Markers of the same class, except for ISSR and RAPD markers, tended to generate subclusters. Also, genes for resistance to races 4 and 5 of fusarium wilt map to the same linkage group that includes an STMS and a SCAR marker previously shown to be linked to fusarium wilt race 1, indicating a clustering of several fusarium-wilt resistance genes around this locus. Significant deviation from the expected 1 : 1 segregation ratio was observed for 136 markers (38.4%, P<0.05). Segregation was biased towards the wild progenitor in 68% of the cases. Segregation distortion was similar for all marker types except for ISSRs that showed only 28.5% aberrant segregation. The map is the most extended genetic map of chickpea currently available. It may serve as a basis for markerassisted selection and map-based cloning of fusarium wilt resistance genes and other agronomically important genes in future.