Evaluation and Screening of Potato Cultivars with Zn Biofortification

Abstract

Aims: The present investigation was carried out during November,2018 to February, 2019at the Horticulture farm of the Department of Horticulture, Bangladesh Agricultural University (BAU), Mymensingh, Bangladesh. The aim of this study was to screen the potato cultivars upon Zn uptake status of the potato tubers through Zn application in soil to mitigate Texturally, the soil is silty-loam and falls under Sonatala series. Study Design: 46 varieties of potato were tested with two treatments: control (no Zn fertilization) and Zn (8 kg ha-1) added as ZnSO4.7H2O (23% Zn). The experiment was laid-out in a randomized complete block design with three replications. There were three blocks representing the three replications. Each block accommodated 46 potato cultivars for with and without Zn treatments. Methodology: The size of each unit plot was 30 m x 2.5 m. The plots were surrounded by 30 cm wide and 10 cm high earthen bunds. One-meter wide irrigation channel was made in-between two blocks. Spacing was 60 cm x 25 cm. Each variety had 10 plants placed in a single line and 4 plants from each line were tagged for recording data.   Results: The Zn concentrations in tuber markedly varied with varieties showing a remarkable ability of some potato varieties to uptake and accumulate relatively more Zn in tubers. Application of Zn fertilizer had an additive effect on the tuber Zn concentration with an increase of 8.5 µg g-1 Zn over the varieties. Potato varieties having Zn content ≥ 4 µg g-1 over control were considered responsive varieties to applied Zn. The genetically Zn-enriched varieties were BARI Alu-7 (Diamant), BARI Alu-13 (Granola), BARI Alu-21, BARI Alu-25 (Asterix), BARI Alu-53 and BARI Alu-73 among 46. These varieties can be regarded as Zn-efficient potato varieties, which would serve as breeding materials for developing potential high-yield varieties with higher tuber Zn content. Zn concentration increased 9-19% tuber yield and 10-117% tuber over control under study. Conclusion: Study findings indicate ample genetic diversity that might be exploited in breeding programs seeking to increase Zn levels in human diets. Zn biofortification with potato tubers noticed great effects for malnutrition problems in human health, and it can be a potential option for mitigating widespread Zn-driven malnutrition for the world population.