O teste em gerações precoces no melhoramento genético de plantas consiste em identificar e selecionar progênies promissoras em gerações iniciais de endogamia, tais como F2 ou F3, e com isso concentrar tempo e recursos somente em populações com potencial para gerar linhas puras superiores. Considerando a ocorrência de relatos conflitantes, este trabalho teve como objetivo avaliar a eficiência do teste precoce no melhoramento genético de soja, utilizando uma população derivada de um cruzamento biparental entre as linhagens 14 e 38, contrastantes para produção de grãos, e selecionadas do cruzamento entre os genitores PI-123439 e PI-239235. Os tratamentos consistiram de uma amostra de 100 progênies de cada tipo: F2:3, F3:4 e F4:5, que foram avaliadas em experimentos em látice 10 x 10 no ano agrícola 2005/6 na área experimental do Departamento de Genética da ESALQ/USP, em Piracicaba, SP. Os experimentos foram avaliados novamente no ano agrícola 2006/7, em dois locais: Piracicaba, SP e Anhumas, SP, utilizando, para isso, os bulks oriundos dos experimentos do ano anterior, isto é, progênies F2:4, F3:5 e F4:6,. A parcela experimental foi constituída de uma linha de 2 m de comprimento, espaçada de 0,5 m, contendo 35 plantas por parcela após o desbaste. Foram avaliados os seguintes caracteres: altura das plantas no florescimento (AF), dias para florescimento (DF), altura das plantas na maturação (AM), dias para maturação (DM) e produção de grãos por parcela (PG). Devido à baixa taxa de germinação das sementes nos experimentos derivados de plantas F3 (F3:4 e F3:5) e, consequentemente à baixa precisão experimental, estes foram excluídos do estudo. Com base nos resultados dos experimentos de 2005/6 foram estimadas as variâncias genéticas e fenotípicas, os coeficientes de herdabilidades e as respostas esperadas com seleção, supondo diferentes intensidades (20%, 30%, 40% e 50%). Com base nos resultados das avaliações de 2006/7 foram obtidas as respostas observadas com seleção, que possibilitaram avaliar a eficiência do teste precoce nas diferentes intensidades de seleção. Observou-se uma boa correspondência entre as respostas preditas e observadas somente para as progênies F4:5, fato este já esperado, considerando o alto grau de heterozigose nas progênies F2:3. Os resultados gerais indicaram que a seleção em geração tão precoces como F2:4 pode ser efetuada, desde que sejam utilizadas intensidades moderados de seleção, da ordem de 40%. / Early generation testing in plant breeding consists of selecting progenies in early generations of selfing such as in F2 or F3, in order to save time and resources. The objective of this work was to assess the early generation testing effectiveness in soybean breeding programs. The base population consisted of a two way cross between inbred lines 14 and 38, derived from the cross between PI-123439 and PI-239235 parents. Entries consisted of a sample of 100 progenies of each generation: F2:3, F3:4 e F4:5, evaluated in lattice 10 x 10 designs in the 2005/6 growing season at Department of Genetics (ESALQ/USP) in Piracicaba, SP. In the 2006/7 growing season new experimental evaluations were performed, using the same experimental designs, in two locations: Piracicaba, SP, and Anhumas, SP, where the entries consisted of bulks derived from 2005/6 entries, i.e., F2:4, F3:5 and F4:6 progenies. Plots consisted of single 2-meter-long rows spaced 0.5 meter apart, with 37 plants after thinning in all experiments. The following traits were evaluated: plant height at flowering (AF), days to flowering (DF), plant height at maturity (AM), days to maturity (DM), and grain yield (PG). Due to the low germination rate and, consequently, the low experimental precision, experiments of F3 derived lines (F3:4 and F3:5) were eliminated. Estimates of genetics variances, heritabilities and expected response to selection, considering four selection intensities (20%, 30%, 40% e 50%) were obtained from 2005/6 evaluations. The observed responses to selection were obtained from the 2006/7 experiments, in order to evaluate the effectiveness of early selection. A good correspondence between estimated and observed responses to selection were observed only for experiments based on F4 derived lines, which is expected, considering the higher degree of heterozigosity of the progenies in as early generations as in F2. General results has shown that selection based in early generation as in F2 can be performed, using moderate intensities of selection, such as 40%.

Existem poucas informações sobre o uso de intercruzamentos em populações de soja derivadas de retrocruzamento. Os objetivos deste trabalho compreendem a avaliação dos efeitos de uma geração de intercruzamentos nas médias, distribuição de frequências, variâncias genéticas e respostas à seleção em uma população de retrocruzamento de soja. A população básica foi derivada de um cruzamento simples entre duas linhagens contrastantes para a produção de grãos, seguido de um retrocruzamento para a linhagem mais produtiva. Cento e dezessete progênies derivadas da população não intercruzada (progênies RC1F2) e cento e dezoito progênies derivadas da população intercruzada (progênies RC1#F2) foram avaliadas no ano agrícola de 2008/09 na Estação Experimental de Anhumas, do Departamento de Genética da ESALQ/USP, em Piracicaba, SP, em dois experimentos em látice quadruplo 11x11 (quatro repetições). As parcelas foram constituídas de linhas de 2 m, espaçadas de 0,5 m, contendo 30 plantas após o desbaste. Estas foram colhidas em bulk (que correspondem às gerações RC1F3 e RC1#F3) e avaliadas novamente no ano agrícola 2010/11, utilizando o mesmo delineamento experimental, tipo de parcela e local. Foram avaliados os seguintes caracteres: número de dias para florescimento (DF), altura da planta no florescimento (AF), número de dias para maturação (DM), altura da planta na maturação (AM) e produção de grãos (PG). Para os dois tipos de populações, RC1 e RC1#, foram estimados os seguintes parâmetros: média geral, amplitude de variação, distribuição das frequências, variância genética entre progênies (σ2p), variância aditiva (σ2A), variância fenotípica entre médias de progênies (σ2F), e resposta esperada com seleção (Rs). As médias foram similares para a maioria dos caracteres entre as populações RC1 e RC1# dentro de cada ano. Entretanto, houve um acréscimo das variâncias genéticas na população intercruzada para a maioria dos caracteres, o que era esperado com base em um modelo de um loco com dois alelos. Consequentemente, a resposta esperada com seleção para PG foi 39% maior, em média, para as populações intercruzadas (RC1#F2 e RC1#F3). Estes resultados indicam que uma geração de intercruzamento após o retrocruzamento é importante em programas de melhoramento genético de soja. / There is limited information on using random mating after backcrossing in soybeans. This work was carried out to evaluate the effects of one generation of random mating after backcrossing on the means, frequency distributions, genetic variances and responses to selection in a soybean population. The basic population was derived from a two-way cross between two inbred lines contrasting for grain yield and backcrossed to the higher yielding one. One hundred and seventeen progenies derived from a not random-mated backcross population (RC1F2 progenies) and one hundred and eighteen progenies derived from a random-mated backcross population (RC1#F2 progenies) were evaluated in the 2008/09 growing season at Anhumas Experimental Station, of the Department of Genetics, ESALQ/USP, located in Piracicaba, state of São Paulo, Brazil. Evaluation trials were carried out using an 11x11 quadruple lattice design (four replications). Plots consisted of 2 m rows spaced by 0.5 m, with 30 plants after thinning. The entries were harvested in bulks (which correspond to RC1F3 and RC1#F3 progenies) and evaluated again in the 2010/11 growing season, using the same experimental design, plot size and location. The following traits were recorded: number of days to flowering (DF), plant height at flowering (AF), number of days to maturity (DM), plant height at maturity (AM), and grain yield (PG). The following parameters were estimated for both RC1 and RC1#: general mean, amplitude of variation, frequency distribution, genetic variance among progenies (σ2p), additive variance (σ2A), phenotypic variance on a progeny mean basis (σ2F), and expected response to selection (Rs). For most traits general means were similar for RC1 and RC1# populations within years. However, genetic variances increased after one generation of random mating, for most traits, which was expected based on a one-locus two-alleles model. Thus, expected response to selection on a progeny mean basis for grain yield (PG) was 39% higher, on average, for the random-mated populations (RC1#F2 and RC1#F3). Overall, the results indicate that one generation of random mating before selfing in backcross population is useful in soybean breeding programs.

In addition to habitat loss and fragmentation, habitat degradation can have important consequences for biodiversity and population persistence, including effects on ecological and genetic processes beyond decreased demographic viability and the loss of genetic variation. Particularly interesting is the potential for evolutionary changes and adaptation to degraded habitats, that can affect population viability even in the short-term. Here, I explore how environmental changes after habitat degradation affect the evolutionary dynamics of populations of the rainforest cycad Zamia fairchildiana, specifically how habitat degradation affects gene dispersal, inbreeding, directional selection, and genotype-by-environment interactions, and the potential for genetic differentiation between populations. Colonies of Z. fairchildiana showed little genetic differentiation in neutral molecular markers across study sites, thus can be considered as subpopulations. Subpopulations in the disturbed habitat are experiencing different environmental conditions when compared to subpopulation in their native habitat. Disturbed-habitat subpopulations showed a faster life-history. This faster life history is associated with a weaker spatial genetic structure and higher levels of inbreeding in the disturbed-habitat subpopulations. In addition, higher light availability in the disturbed habitat seems to be a major agent of selection on traits like leaf production that have the potential to respond to selection in these subpopulations. Different traits were under selection in the native-habitat subpopulations, suggesting the potential for genetic differentiation between native and disturbed-habitat subpopulations. Genotype by environment interactions in seed germination and seedling survival, in response to light and water availability, further suggested that subpopulations can adaptively diverge between habitats, but the relative role of genetic and environmental factors, particularly maternal effects, on the magnitude and rate of genetic differentiation between subpopulations remains to be evaluated. These results suggest that habitat degradation can have important consequences for the evolutionary dynamics of populations of this cycad, not necessarily typical of habitat loss and fragmentation. This study identified factors and processes important for population persistence in degraded habitats, but population responses to habitat degradation are complex. Thus further studies and long-term experiments are required for better understanding the effects of habitat degradation on population viability.

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