Maud Tenaillon

CNRS, Paris-Saclay, France

 

Session Title:

Domestication in retrospect and the future of breeding

 

Keywords: 

Domestication, Breeding, Selection criteria, Plasticity, Orphan crops, Genetic resources

 

Abstract: 

Domestication is a gradual process by which wild plants have acquired trait beneficial to humans, and have concomitantly adapted to a field environment. With the advent of intensive agriculture, initial mass selection on phenotypes has transitioned into plant breeding, resulting in the pyramiding of alleles into high-yielding cultivars. Today, plant production faces several emerging challenges, including climate changes and the urgent need for sustainable plant production. These challenges require multidisciplinary approaches and invite a complete rethinking of plant breeding. In this perspective, it is essential to better understand retrospectively the impact of human selection on the adaptive and plastic capacities of crop plants, and to define ideotypes and new selection criteria in line with low-input agricultural practices. This session will provide a playground for addressing these issues and discussing promising avenues that are being explored, from the de novo domestication of orphan species to the description and remobilization of genetic resources.

 

Room 120