Genetic diversity, linkage disequilibrium, and association mapping analyses of <i>Gossypium barbadense</i> L. germplasm

<div><p>Limited polymorphism and narrow genetic base, due to genetic bottleneck through historic domestication, highlight a need for comprehensive characterization and utilization of existing genetic diversity in cotton germplasm collections. In this study, 288 worldwide <i>Gossypium barbadense</i> L. cotton germplasm accessions were evaluated in two diverse environments (Uzbekistan and USA). These accessions were assessed for genetic diversity, population structure, linkage disequilibrium (LD), and LD-based association mapping (AM) of fiber quality traits using 108 genome-wide simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers. Analyses revealed structured population characteristics and a high level of intra-variability (67.2%) and moderate interpopulation differentiation (32.8%). Eight percent and 4.3% of markers revealed LD in the genome of the <i>G</i>. <i>barbadense</i> at critical values of r² ≥ 0.1 and r² ≥ 0.2, respectively. The LD decay was on average 24.8 cM at the threshold of r² ≥ 0.05. LD retained on average distance of 3.36 cM at the threshold of r² ≥ 0.1. Based on the phenotypic evaluations in the two diverse environments, 100 marker loci revealed a strong association with major fiber quality traits using mixed linear model (MLM) based association mapping approach. Fourteen marker loci were found to be consistent with previously identified quantitative trait loci (QTLs), and 86 were found to be new unreported marker loci. Our results provide insights into the breeding history and genetic relationship of <i>G</i>. <i>barbadense</i> germplasm and should be helpful for the improvement of cotton cultivars using molecular breeding and omics-based technologies.</p>