Hui Zhang, Hongkai Liang, Hui Zhi, Di Yuan, Qi Yao, Renliang Zhang, Lihe Xing, Baolan Yang, Luman Sang, Lirong Zhao, Sha Tang, Liwei Wang, Hailong Wang, Yushuang Ren, Hui Zhang, Yanyan Zhang, Enbo Wang, Xinyu Man, Gongjin Xu, Linlin Zhang, Qiang He, Xianmin Diao, Guanqing Jia

Plant Biotechnology Journal; 2025; IF:10.1

DOI: 10.1111/pbi.14594

Abstract

Setaria (including both Setaria viridis and Setaria italica) is increasingly recognized as a promising C₄ model plant due to its compact diploid genome, brief growth cycle, and self-pollinating nature. Ci846 is used as a model variety because of its well-established transformation system and efficient indoor research platform. In this study, we constructed a substantial ethyl methane sulfonate (EMS)-induced mutant library for Ci846, comprising 9,243 M₂ lines and 775 morphologically distinct variants. We genotyped 4,109 M₂ plants using 205 pools and identified a total of 2,398,727 SNPs and 500,722 Indels, with an average mutation density of 1 SNP/35.89 Kb and 1 Indel/171.95 Kb per sample pool, covering 94.24% of the entire genome. By integrating extensive phenotypic and genomic data, we established an efficient platform for the rapid identification of targeted mutant lines. Utilizing this platform, we rapidly determined the early flowering mutant eEhd36 using forward genetics, and pinpoint the yellow green leaf gene SiYGL1 using reverse genetics. All data and tools are deployed on www.setariadb.com/millet/mutation for public access. This mutant library will serve as an invaluable resource for functional genomics and genetic improvement in foxtail millet.