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Finger millet (Eleusine coracana L. Gaertn) is an important minor millet for food and nutritional security in semi-arid regions of the world. The crop has wide adaptability and can be grown right from high hills in Himalayan region to coastal plains. It provides food grain as well as palatable straw for cattle, and is fairly climate resilient. The crop has large gene pool with distinct features of both Indian and African germplasm types. Interspecific hybridization between Indian and African germplasm has resulted in greater yield enhancement and disease resistance. The crop has shown numerous advantages over major cereals in terms of stress adaptation, nutritional quality and health benefits. It has indispensable repository of novel genes for the benefits of mankind. Although rapid strides have been made in allele mining in model crops and major cereals, the progress in finger millet genomics is lacking. Comparative genomics have paved the way for the marker-assisted selection, where resistance gene homologues of rice for blast and sequence variants for nutritional traits from other cereals have been invariably used. Transcriptomics studies have provided preliminary understanding of the nutritional variation, drought and salinity tolerance. However, the genetics of many important traits in finger millet is poorly understood and need systematic efforts from biologists across disciplines. Recently, deciphered finger millet genome will enable identification of candidate genes for agronomically and nutritionally important traits. Further, improvement in genome assembly and application of genomic selection as well as genome editing in near future will provide plethora of information and opportunity to understand the genetics of complex traits.

The occurrence of various stresses, as the outcome of global climate change, results in the yield losses of crop plants. Prospecting of genes in stress tolerant plant species may help to protect and improve their agronomic performance. Finger millet ( Eleusine coracana L.) is a valuable source of superior genes and alleles for stress tolerance. In this study, we isolated a novel endoplasmic reticulum (ER) membrane tethered bZIP transcription factor from finger millet, EcbZIP17 . Transgenic tobacco plants overexpressing this gene showed better vegetative growth and seed yield compared with wild type (WT) plants under optimal growth conditions and confirmed upregulation of brassinosteroid signalling genes. Under various abiotic stresses, such as 250 mM NaCl, 10% PEG6000, 400 mM mannitol, water withdrawal, and heat stress, the transgenic plants showed higher germination rate, biomass, primary and secondary root formation, and recovery rate, compared with WT plants. The transgenic plants exposed to an ER stress inducer resulted in greater leaf diameter and plant height as well as higher expression of the ER stress-responsive genes BiP , PDIL , and CRT1 . Overall, our results indicated that EcbZIP17 improves plant growth at optimal conditions through brassinosteroid signalling and provide tolerance to various environmental stresses via ER signalling pathways.

Silicon (Si) uptake and accumulation in plants can mitigate various biotic stresses through enhanced plant resistance against wide range of herbivores. But the role of silicon in defense molecular mechanism still remains to be elucidated in finger millet. In the present study, we identified three silicon transporter genes viz. EcLsi1 , EcLsi2 , and EcLsi6 involved in silicon uptake mechanism. In addition, the study also identified and characterized ten different Si transporters genes from finger millet through transcriptome assembly. The phylogenetic study revealed that EcLsi1 and EcLsi6  are homologs while EcLsi2 and EcLsi3  form another pair of homologs. EcLsi1 and EcLsi6 belong to family of NIP2s (Nod26-like major intrinsic protein), bona fide silicon transporters, whereas EcLsi2 and EcLsi3 , an efflux Si transporter, belong to an uncharacterized anion transporter family having a significant identity with putative arsB transporter proteins. Further, the phylogenetic and topology analysis suggest that EcLsi1 and EcLsi2 co-evolved during evolution while, EcLsi2 and EcLsi3 are evolved from either EcLsi1 and/or EcLsi6 by fusion or duplication event. Moreover, these silicon transporters are predicted to be localized in plasma membrane, but their structural differences indicate that they might have differences in their silicon uptake ability. Silicon amendment induces the synergistic defense mechanism by significantly increasing the transcript level of silicon transporter genes ( EcLsi1 , EcLsi2 and EcLsi6 ) as well as defense hormone regulating genes ( EcSAM , EcPAL and EcLOX ) at 72 hpi (hours of post infestation) in both stem and roots compared to non-silicon treated plants against pink stem borer in finger millet plants. This study will help to understand the molecular defense mechanism for developing strategies for insect pest management.

Finger millet productivity is strongly influenced by genotype × environment interaction (GEI), which complicates the identification of high-yielding and stable genotypes. This study evaluated 35 genetically diverse finger millet genotypes across three agro-ecological zones viz., Odisha (E1), Jharkhand (E2), and Bihar (E3) during two rabi seasons (2023–24 and 2024–25). A randomized block design with three replications was implemented and key quantitative traits i.e. grain yield per plant, 1000-grain weight, and number of fingers on the main ear were recorded. AMMI and GGE biplot analyses were applied to assess GEI, stability, and adaptability. Genotype G18 (VR-1176) consistently emerged as the most stable and high-yielding across environments, followed by G13 (VL-Mandia-352), G28 (Bada Mandia), G3 (PR-1639), G25 (Bada Kumnda), G26 (Badatara), G11 (VR-1223), G15 (VR-12-38), G14 (OEB-610), and G33 (FEZN-84). AMMI 1 and AMMI 2 biplots confirmed these findings, highlighting G18 and G15 as superior performers. Among sites, Jharkhand (E2) was identified as the most favourable environment. Additionally, molecular profiling using UGEP markers 46, 66, and 68 revealed polymorphic banding in high-yielding genotypes, which validates phenotypic observations. The integration of phenotypic and molecular analyses provides a robust framework for identifying finger millet genotypes with both high productivity and yield stability, supporting their recommendation for breeding programs and wider cultivation.

Background Phosphorus (P) bioavailability, a major problem in acidic agro-ecosystem due to its fixation in clay lattices. Bioavailability of insoluble P is enhanced by phosphate solubilizing microorganisms (PSMs). Therefore, the current study was carried out to evaluate the phosphate solubilizing efficiency of isolated actinomycetes from different acid soils. Methods Isolation of actinomycetes from native soils and its potency was studied in a pot experiment with fourteen treatments, laid out in completely randomized design. Results A total of 54 actinomycetes strains were isolated out of which six strains showed the ability of P solubilization and tested positive for biochemical tests like urease, methyl red, ammonia production and decomposition of esculin, starch, casein, hippurate. Three isolated actinomycetes strains (S18,S19,S16) performed better in in-vitro P solubilization and in measurement of optical density, IAA production and pathogen test. Pot experiment with the best three microbial strains of actinomycetes was studied to evaluate the potency in test crop finger millet with a set of treatments comprising of with and without inorganic phosphorus. Growth parameters like, plant height(cm) varied from 56.11 ± 2.86 to 72.89 ± 1.43 cm, root length was in range of 36.89 ± 2.44 to 65.44 ± 2.89 cm. Root dry weight(g) varied from 8.16 ± 0.41 to13.96 ± 0.78 and shoot dry weight(g) from 6.72 ± 0.74 to 13.80 ± 1.68. Photosynthetic activity like chlorophyll content (SPAD) varied from 18.36 ± 0.49 to 28.24 ± 0.13. Root volume was also influenced by combination of isolated actinomycetes stains with inorganic P fertilizers. Highest phosphorous uptake of shoot and root (mg pot − 1 ) were 30.15 ± 6.31; 13.80 ± 2.65 respectively in the best performed strain S18 followed by S19,S16 and control pots. Conclusions Based on biochemical and genomic studies, three best isolated microbial strains viz. S18 ( Streptomyces cellostaticus ), S19 ( Streptomyces durhamensis ) and S16 ( Streptomyces longiwodensis) were confirmed as actinomycetes. Findings on pot experiment resulted that use of isolated actinomycetes strains along with 75% inorganic P fertilizer in finger millet crop can be recommended for enhancing P use efficiency under acidic Inceptisols .

Climate change and population growth pose challenges to food security. Major crops such as maize, wheat, and rice are expected to face yield reductions due to warming in the coming years, highlighting the need for incorporating climate-resilient crops in agricultural production systems. Finger millet ( Eleusine coracana (L.) Gaertn) is a nutritious cereal crop adapted to arid regions that could serve as an alternative crop for sustaining the food supply in low rainfall environments where other crops routinely fail. Despite finger millet’s nutritional qualities and climate resilience, it is deemed an “orphan crop,” neglected by researchers compared to major crops, which has hampered breeding efforts. However, in recent years, finger millet has entered the genomics era. Next-generation sequencing resources, including a chromosome-scale genome assembly, have been developed to support trait characterization. This review discusses the current genetic and genomic resources available for finger millet while addressing the gaps in knowledge and tools that are still needed to aid breeders in bringing finger millet to its full production potential.

Finger millet ( Eleusine coracana (L.) Gaertn.) is a calcium-rich, nutritious and resilient crop that thrives even in harsh environmental conditions. In such ecologies, seed longevity and seedling vigor are crucial for sustainable crop production amid climate change. The current study explores the genetics of accelerated aging on seed longevity traits across 221 diverse accessions of finger millet through genome-wide association approach (GWAS). A significant variation was identified in germination percentage, germination rate indices, mean germination time, seedling vigor indices and dry weight upon aging treatment. GWAS model from 11,832 high-quality SNPs identified through Genotyping-by-Sequencing (GBS) approach produced 491 marker-trait associations (MTAs) for 27 traits, of which 54 were FDR-corrected. A pleiotropic SNP, FM_SNP_9478 identified on chromosome 7B was associated with the traits viz., germination after aging, germination index after aging and their relative measures. Functional annotation revealed DET1 and expansin-A2 influenced seed coat integrity, critical for germination and aging resilience. Probable protein phosphatase 2C3 and piezo-type ion channels contributed to mechanical sensing and stress adaptation in seeds. Beta-amylase and acetyl-CoA carboxylase 2 were identified for seed metabolism and stress response. These insights lay the framework for targeted breeding efforts to improve seed quality and resilience under diverse production conditions.

Goosegrass is a problematic weed species in Florida vegetable plasticulture production. To reduce costs associated with goosegrass control, a post-emergence precision applicator is under development for use atop the planting beds. To facilitate in situ goosegrass detection and spraying, tiny- You Only Look Once 3 (YOLOv3-tiny) was evaluated as a potential detector. Two annotation techniques were evaluated: (1) annotation of the entire plant (EP) and (2) annotation of partial sections of the leaf blade (LB). For goosegrass detection in strawberry, the F-score was 0.75 and 0.85 for the EP and LB derived networks, respectively. For goosegrass detection in tomato, the F-score was 0.56 and 0.65 for the EP and LB derived networks, respectively. The LB derived networks increased recall at the cost of precision , compared to the EP derived networks. The LB annotation method demonstrated superior results within the context of production and precision spraying, ensuring more targets were sprayed with some over-spraying on false targets. The developed network provides online, real-time, and in situ detection capability for weed management field applications such as precision spraying and autonomous scouts.

Finger millet is one of the small millets with high nutritive value. This crop is vulnerable to blast disease caused by Pyricularia grisea, which occurs annually during rainy and winter seasons. Leaf blast occurs at early crop stage and is highly damaging. Mapping of resistance genes and other quantitative trait loci (QTLs) for agronomic performance can be of great use for improving finger millet genotypes. Evaluation of one hundred and twenty-eight finger millet genotypes in natural field conditions revealed that leaf blast caused severe setback on agronomic performance for susceptible genotypes, most significant traits being plant height and root length. Plant height was reduced under disease severity while root length was increased. Among the genotypes, IE4795 showed superior response in terms of both disease resistance and better agronomic performance. A total of seven unambiguous QTLs were found to be associated with various agronomic traits including leaf blast resistance by association mapping analysis. The markers, UGEP101 and UGEP95, were strongly associated with blast resistance. UGEP98 was associated with tiller number and UGEP9 was associated with root length and seed yield. Cross species validation of markers revealed that 12 candidate genes were associated with 8 QTLs in the genomes of grass species such as rice, foxtail millet, maize, Brachypodium stacei, B. distachyon, Panicum hallii and switchgrass. Several candidate genes were found proximal to orthologous sequences of the identified QTLs such as 1,4-β-glucanase for leaf blast resistance, cytokinin dehydrogenase (CKX) for tiller production, calmodulin (CaM) binding protein for seed yield and pectin methylesterase inhibitor (PMEI) for root growth and development. Most of these QTLs and their putatively associated candidate genes are reported for first time in finger millet. On validation, these novel QTLs may be utilized in future for marker assisted breeding for the development of fungal resistant and high yielding varieties of finger millet.

Endophytic bacteria, recognized as eco-friendly biofertilizers, have demonstrated the potential to enhance crop growth and yield. While the plant growth-promoting effects of endophytic bacteria have been extensively studied, the impact of weed endophytes remains less explored. In this study, we aimed to isolate endophytic bacteria from native weeds and assess their plant growth-promoting abilities in rice under varying chemical fertilization. The evaluation encompassed measurements of mineral phosphate and potash solubilization, as well as indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) production activity by the selected isolates. Two promising strains, tentatively identified as Alcaligenes faecalis (BTCP01) from Eleusine indica (Goose grass) and Metabacillus indicus (BTDR03) from Cynodon dactylon (Bermuda grass) based on 16S rRNA gene phylogeny, exhibited noteworthy phosphate and potassium solubilization activity, respectively. BTCP01 demonstrated superior phosphate solubilizing activity, while BTDR03 exhibited the highest potassium (K) solubilizing activity. Both isolates synthesized IAA in the presence of L-tryptophan, with the detection of nifH and ipdC genes in their genomes. Application of isolates BTCP01 and BTDR03 through root dipping and spraying at the flowering stage significantly enhanced the agronomic performance of rice variety CV. BRRI dhan29. Notably, combining both strains with 50% of recommended N, P, and K fertilizer doses led to a substantial increase in rice grain yields compared to control plants receiving 100% of recommended doses. Taken together, our results indicate that weed endophytic bacterial strains BTCP01 and BTDR03 hold promise as biofertilizers, potentially reducing the dependency on chemical fertilizers by up to 50%, thereby fostering sustainable rice production.