Characterization of Nutritional and Genetic Diversity in Millets of Uttarakhand

Abstract

Three species of minor millets, Barnyard millet (Echinochloa frumentacea), Finger millet newline(Eleusine coracana) and Foxtail millet (Setaria italica), grown and harvested from highaltitude newlineregions of the Himalayan range, were selected for analysis. The scheme of analysis newlinewas divided into three categories, grain constitution, genetic diversity and environmental newlineadaptability. The millets from high-altitude regions in northern India, experiencing cold newlinetemperature growth conditions were compared to their counterparts grown at low-altitude newlineregions in southern India. Grain constitution of the three millet species was studied using newlineproximate analysis techniques for quantifying protein, fat, starch, total dietary fiber, newlinesodium, potassium and moisture content. The Barnyard millet species from high-altitude newlineregions of Uttarakhand was found to exhibit higher protein (17.07%), fat (5.3%) and newlinemineral levels (Na2+ and K+) as compared to its counterpart from lower altitude regions. newlineBased on this finding, the Barnyard millet species was selected for further analysis of starch newlineand amylose concentration, genetic diversity in the amylose producing gene, and for plant newlinehormone assays for accessing environmental adaptability. A series of biochemical assays newlinestudying the concentration of starch and amylose in 17 Barnyard millet grain samples from newline17 different locations, revealed higher starch concentration of 50% or higher in all the highaltitude newlinemillet cultivars as compared to the low-altitude cultivars. The high-altitude newlinecultivars/test entries identified with more than 50% starch content were LL-3, BIAVT newline4061, BIAVT 4114 and BIAVT 4107, from altitude levels between 1000 and 1524 meters newlineabove msl. A similar trend of increased amylose content was seen in high-altitude millets newlinecultivars, with LC-P and LC-D exhibiting 29.18% and 22.44% increased amylose as newlinecompared to their low altitude counterparts. Other high-altitude grown samples such as newlineBIAVT 4113, BIAVT 4002 and BIAVT 4007 also displayed a 22.54-24.70% increase in newlineamylose.