Molecular Mapping of Drought Tolerance Tenes in Cowpea (Vigna Unguiculata [L.] Walp).

Cowpea (Vigna unguiculata [L.] Walp) is a leguminous crop that many people around the world rely on to meet their basic nutritional needs. Both humans and livestock consume the protein and fiber-rich grain and vegetative matter of the cowpea plant. Water stress affects this crop like many other crops, by reducing total biomass and grain yields. Genotypes of cowpea have been identified that contain genes that confer tolerance to drought.  In order to map the genes controlling the drought tolerance, a recombinant inbred line (RIL) population has been created from the parental genotypes IT98K-476-8 and ‘Green Eye Cream’ (GEC). This population is being phenotypically analyzed for drought stress response. Genotyping of the population is in process by double digestion restriction site–associated DNA sequencing (ddRAD-seq), and the genes controlling the drought tolerance will be mapped using the resulting SNPs. These genes, once identified and cloned, will aid in the understanding of drought tolerance and development of molecular plant breeding tools that can be applied to this and closely related species.