# Genomics-assisted breeding for drought adaptation of sorghum in the Sahelian region

Jacques Martin Faye, Eyanawa Akata, Bassirou Sine, Cyril Diatta, Daniel Foncéka, Geoffrey Morris

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Jacques Martin Faye, Eyanawa Akata, Bassirou Sine, Cyril Diatta, Daniel Foncéka, et al.. Genomics-assisted breeding for drought adaptation of sorghum in the Sahelian region. Sorghum in the 21st Century, Global Sorghum Conference, CIRAD; Kansas State University; Sorghum International Development; IRD; CERAAS, Jun 2023, Montpellier, France. pp.231. hal-05181963

HAL Id: hal-05181963

https://hal.science/hal-05181963v1

Submitted on 23 Jul 2025

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Genomics-assisted breeding for drought adaptation of sorghum in the Sahelian region

Jacques Faye<fnref n="1" /> (jmartin.faye@gmail.com), Eyanawa Akata², Bassirou Sine³, Cyril Diatta⁴, Daniel Fonceka⁵, Geoffrey Morris⁶

Drought and unpredictable rainfall decrease sorghum (Sorghum bicolor, L. Moench) productivity in semiarid regions of West Africa. Understanding the genetic architecture of drought tolerance of sorghum germplasm from breeding programs could contribute to efficient molecular breeding in West Africa. This study aimed to dissect the genetic architecture of drought adaptation to develop high-throughput and breeder-friendly markers for rapid introgression of favorable trait-associated alleles into farmers' preferred varieties. First, we used genotyping-by sequencing to characterize 159,101 SNPs across 756 accessions of the West African sorghum association panel assembled from breeding programs of Senegal, Niger, Mali, and Togo. The genetic diversity structured by botanical types and subpopulations within botanical types across countries. Large-effect quantitative trait loci (QTL) for photoperiodic flowering indicate an oligogenic architecture of flowering time in West African sorghum. Secondly, we applied genome-wide association studies using pre- and post-flowering drought response variables from ten managed water stress environments to identify genomic regions associated with drought responses. Significantly positive pleiotropic associations contributed to high phenotypic variance and colocalized with known staygreen (Stg) loci. Results suggest the existence of Stg alleles in West African sorghum. Three marker loci associated with large-effect alleles were converted into breeder-friendly markers and used in marker-assisted selection for drought tolerance. These resources combined with discoveries from the global scientific community are used to accelerate the development of locally-adapted varieties through efficient genomics-assisted breeding to meet global food demand in semiarid regions of West Africa.

<footnote n="1">¹ Centre of Improvement of the Adaptation to Drought (CERAAS), Regional Center of Excellence on Dryland Crops, Thiès, Senegal ; ² Institut Togolais de Recherche Agronomique, Lomé, Togo ; ³ Centre of Improvement of the Adaptation to Drought (CERAAS), Thiès, Senegal ; ⁴ Institut Sénégalais de Recherches Agricoles, Bambey, Senegal ; ⁵ AGAP, Univ Montpellier, Cirad, INRA, Montpellier SupAgro, Montpellier, France ; ⁶ Department of Soil & Crop Science, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, United States</footnote>