Food legumes are important constituents of human and animal nutrition, supplying high quality proteins crucial for a balanced diet. These crops also play an important role in low-input agricultural production systems by fixing atmospheric nitrogen. Despite systematic and continuous breeding efforts by legume researchers all over the world, substantial genetic gains have not been achieved. These issues require immediate attention, and overall, a paradigm shift is needed in breeding strategies to strengthen our traditional crop improvement programs. To this end, Biology and Breeding of Food Legumes provides extensive information on their history, origin, evolution and botany, as well as breeding objectives and procedures, nutritional improvement, industrial uses, post-harvest technology and recent developments made through biotechnological intervention.
1. History, Origin and Evolution 2. Domestication
3. Biology of Food Legumes
4. Breeding for Improvement of Cool Season Food Legumes
5. Breeding for Improvement of Warm Season Food Legumes
6. Distant Hybridization and Alien Gene Introgression
7. Polyploidy
8. Cytology and Molecular Cytogenetics
9. Molecular Cytogenetics in Physical Mapping of Genomes
and Alien Introgressions 10. Micropropagation
11. Androgenesis and Doubled-Haploid Production in Food Legumes
12. Genetic Transformation
13. Male Sterility and Hybrid Production Technology
14. Mutagenesis
15. Breeding for Biotic Stresses
16. Breeding for Abiotic Stresses
17. Legume Improvement in Acidic and Less Fertile Soils
18. Molecular Breeding Approach in Managing Abiotic Stresses
19. Trait Mapping and Molecular Breeding
20. Improving Protein Content and Nutrition Quality
21. Underutilized Food Legumes: Potential for Multipurpose Uses
22. Legumes as a Model Plant Family
23. Plant Genetic Resources and Conservation of Biodiversity
24. Seed Dormancy and Viability
25. Postharvest Technology
26. Value Addition and International Trade
A Pratap, Senior Scientist (Plant Breeding) Indian Institute of Pulses Research, India,
J Kumar, Senior Scientist (Plant Breeding), Indian Institute of Pulses Research, India