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Unveiling Genetic Variation in Egyptian cotton (Gossypium barbadense L.) germplasm: A Combined Approach of Morphological Characterization and Multivariate Analysis

Abstract

Cotton (Gossypium sp) is a commercial crop that is predominantly grown in tropical and subtropical regions, with India emerging as the largest producer globally. This study focused on the genetic diversity and morphological characterization of Gossypium barbadense L., the second most cultivated cotton species. Comprehensive data encompassing qualitative and quantitative traits, spanning morphological attributes to yield-contributing parameters, were documented and analyzed using appropriate statistical analysis. The findings indicate the significance of specific attributes viz., the number of monopodia and sympodia per plant, boll weight, and fiber fineness, which emerged as highly reliable markers for selection. These traits exhibit elevated genotypic and phenotypic coefficients of variation, along with substantial heritability (h2) and genetic advance as percent of mean. Multivariate analysis, Principal component analysis divided the total variance into 14 components, and cluster analysis segregated the germplasm into five distinct clusters, highlighting the substantial genetic variation.

Harini P. Shanmugam, N. Premalatha*, A. Subramanian, N. Manikanda Boopathi, K. Guruswamy

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