Kashmir’s rice holds clues to a journey from East Asia, Pg II

Key Highlights:

• A study by Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology (SKUAST-Kashmir) found that Kashmir's traditional rice varieties possess unique genetic history, including cold-tolerance genes.
• Genetic analysis indicated these varieties are closely related to rice from the Korean Peninsula and Northeast China, suggesting an East Asian origin.
• The research utilized a comparison with the 3K rice panel, a global collection of 3,010 rice germplasm samples.
• These traditional landraces are considered a valuable reservoir of useful genes, particularly for climate change adaptation, which modern varieties have partly lost.

Kashmir Rice.jpg

Detailed Insights:

• The SKUAST-Kashmir study sequenced 142 rice germplasm accessions from Kashmir, comparing them with the global 3K rice panel.
• Researchers focused on 21 agriculturally relevant traits, including grain characteristics, starch content, aroma, and adaptation features.
• Genes like HAN1 and CTB4a, associated with cold tolerance, showed strong affinity with East Asian rice, crucial for Kashmir's cold growing conditions.
• The findings suggest potential historical movement of rice germplasm, possibly through Central Asia along early trade routes like the Silk Road, or directly across the Himalayas.
• Modern rice varieties in Kashmir, bred for higher yield, have often lost the cold tolerance present in traditional landraces.
• Archaeological evidence suggests wheat and barley were dominant crops in Kashmir during the Neolithic period, with rice likely introduced later, around 1000-1500 BC during the Megalithic period.
• The study emphasizes the need for active conservation of these landraces due to their genetic value for future crop breeding and climate resilience.

Scientific/Technical Concepts Involved:

• Germplasm: Genetic material, such as seeds or tissues, that can be used to propagate plants.
• Landraces: Traditional, locally adapted varieties of a domesticated animal or plant species that have evolved over time through natural selection and human cultivation.
• 3K rice panel: A comprehensive collection of 3,010 diverse rice varieties (Oryza sativa) from around the world, used for genetic studies.
• Holocene: The current geological epoch, which began approximately 11,700 years ago after the last major glacial period.