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VOL. 7, ISSUE 4 (2025)
Assessment of genetic divergence in snake gourd (Trichosanthes anguina L.) through multivariate techniques
Authors
Sanjita Marandi, MK Pandit, Satadal Das, A Mogalalli, A Das
Abstract
Maintaining, assessing, and characterizing
traditional crop diversity is crucial for ensuring sustainable farming and food
security. This study focuses on snake gourd (Trichosanthes anguina L.),
a relatively underutilized, monoecious cucurbit predominantly cultivated with
minimal inputs on marginal lands in West Bengal. Significant genetic diversity
exists among the snake gourd genotypes in this region, encompassing both
landraces and local cultivars. In the present study, thirty-two morphologically
diverse snake gourd genotypes were collected from various agro-climatic zones
of West Bengal and evaluated during the spring-summer season of 2022–2023 based
on morphological and yield traits; genetic divergence among genotypes was
estimated using multivariate analysis employing Mahalanobis’ D² statistic,
clustering them by Tocher’s method. Among the six distinct clusters, Cluster-I
included the highest number of genotypes (13), followed by Cluster-II (11
genotypes), Cluster-III (5 genotypes), while Clusters-IV, V, and VI, each
contained a single genotype, suggesting substantial genetic variability among
the genotypes. Low intra-cluster distances indicated relative homogeneity
within individual clusters, whereas the maximum inter-cluster divergence was
observed between Cluster-I and Cluster-V (D² = 18.003), reflecting high genetic
dissimilarity. Based on key agronomic traits, like days to first female flower,
days to first fruit set, days to first harvest, fruit weight, number of fruits
per plant, and fruit yield, fiver genotypes namely, BCSG-9, BCSG-6, BCSG-11,
BCSG-36, and BCSG-38 were identified as promising candidates for future
hybridization programs aimed at developing superior segregating populations.
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Pages:6-11
How to cite this article:
Sanjita Marandi, MK Pandit, Satadal Das, A Mogalalli, A Das "Assessment of genetic divergence in snake gourd (<i>Trichosanthes</i> <i>anguina </i>L.) through multivariate techniques". International Journal of Ecology and Environmental Sciences, Vol 7, Issue 4, 2025, Pages 6-11
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