AMMI and GGE analyses of soyabean (Glycine max L. Merrill) genotypes infected and uninfected with Cucumber mosaic virus

Abstract

Soyabean is an important source of protein for millions of people in developing countries. However, infection by Cucumber mosaic virus (CMV) causes devastating losses. Cultivation of resistant varieties has been identified as the best management strategy in many crops. The present study was, therefore, conducted to identify soyabean genotypes with high stability for growth and seed weight under CMV and disease-free conditions. Thus, eight soyabean genotypes were evaluated as CMV-infected and uninfected, using completely randomised design replicated five times and set up in the screenhouse at the School of Agriculture and Agricultural Technology, Federal University of Minna, (lat.9°40֬ N;long 6°30֬ E at an altitude of 220 m.a.s.l), Nigeria in 2018. Soyabean seedlings were infected with the virus by sap transmission at 10 days after sowing (DAS). Additive Main Effects and Multiplicative (AMMI) analyses of the evaluated parameters for growth and seed weight of the test genotypes showed that environments’ effects -infected and uninfected- were significant (p<0.05). They accounted for 100% Genotype × Environment (G×E) interaction. Disease-free soyabean plants enhanced significantly higher growth and seed weight than the CMV-infected plants. The AMMI and Genotype main effects (G) plus Genotype×Environment (GGE) analyses showed that TGX 1993-4FN was the genotype with the greatest stability for leaf diameter, leaf length, number of leaves per plant, number of days to flowering and seed weight. It is recommended that, the soyabean genotype TGX 1993-4FN, can be exploited for breeding purposes and strategies that will prevent CMV infection in soyabean fields should so be adopted by farmers.