Browsing by Author "Brown, Allan"

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    Bananas and Plantains (Musa spp.)
    (Springer, Cham, 2017) Brown, Allan; Tumuhimbise, Robooni; Amah, Delphine; Uwimana, Brigitte; Nyine, Moses; Mduma, Hassan; Talengera, David; Karamura, Deborah; Kuriba, Jerome; Swennen, Rony
    With a production of 145 million metric tons worldwide (worth 26.5 billion Euro), banana (Musa spp.) is one of the world’s most important staple food crops and arguably the world’s most popular fruit in terms of international trade (FAO 2014). Banana and plantains (Musa spp.), collectively referred to here as bananas, are grown in more than 135 countries and found in most tropical and subtropical regions around the world. While industrialized nations view banana primarily as a dessert item, many regions of the developing world consider cooking bananas and plantains as essential staples that contribute significantly to the caloric intake of low-income subsistence farmers. Although sensitivity to photoperiod has been noted in certain cultivars (Fortescue et al. 2011), banana is an almost nonseasonal crop that reliably provides a carbohydrate source year-round which makes it vitally important to both nutrition and food security.
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    Seed Set Patterns in East African Cooking Bananas (Musa spp.) are Dependent on Weather Before, During, and After Pollination
    (Research Square, 2020) Waniale, Allan; Mukasa, Settumba B.; Tugume, Arthur K.; Tumuhimbise, Robooni; Kubiriba, Jerome; Tushemereirwe, Wilberforce K.; Batte, Michael; Brown, Allan; Swennen, Rony
    Seed set in banana (Musa spp.) is influenced by weather but the most critical weather attribute(s) and the critical period are unknown. Such information is of paramount importance to increase seed set for banana breeding programs. Three female fertile East African cooking bananas (EACBs), ‘Enzirabahima’ (AAA), ‘Mshale’ (AA), and ‘Nshonowa’ (AA) were pollinated with the highly male fertile wild banana ‘Calcutta 4’ (AA). At full maturity, bunches were harvested and ripened and seeds extracted from ripe fruit pulp. Seed set was then correlated with weather before, during, and after pollination. Results: Seed set was positively correlated with high temperatures (r=0.172 – 0.488), solar radiation (r=0.181 – 0.282) and negatively correlated with rainfall (r=-0.214 – -0.238) and relative humidity (RH) (r=-0.158 – -0.438) between 75 and 15 days before pollination (DBP). The pattern of weather association was cultivar-dependent with ‘Nshonowa’ having the strongest significant associations. At the time of pollination, high average temperatures were critical for seed set in ‘Enzirabahima’ (r=0.214, P<0.01) while high morning RH was critical for ‘Mshale’ (r=0.299, P<0.01). After pollination, high morning temperatures were associated with seed set (r=0.150 – 0.429) between 15 days to 90 days after pollination (DAP). High average temperatures were negatively correlated with seed set in ‘Mshale’ and ‘Nshonowa’ from 45 DAP to time of harvest (r=-0.208 – -0.344). Coefficients of correlation were generally highest 15 DBP especially for ‘Mshale’ and ‘Nshonowa.’ Principle component analysis showed that average and maximum temperature are the most important variables in the entire data set. Conclusion: Coefficients of correlation were generally less than 0.5 partly as a result of weather involvement in seed set at several floral development stages; before, during, and after pollination. The most critical developmental stage is 15 DBP especially for ‘Mshale’ and ‘Nshonowa’ as they had the high correlation coefficients. Average temperature should be the main focus for seed set increase in banana.
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    Seed Set Patterns in East African Cooking Bananas are Asymmetric in Bunches and Fruits
    (Research Square, 2020) Waniale, Allan; Mukasa, Settumba B.; Tugume, Arthur K.; Tumuhimbise, Robooni; Kubiriba, Jerome; Tushemereirwe, Wilberforce K.; Batte, Michael; Brown, Allan; Swennen, Rony
    Low female fertility in bananas is the biggest hurdle for banana breeding. The aim of this study was to determine seed set patterns in East African cooking bananas EACBs to inform future decisions on a more targeted approach of increasing seed set and subsequently banana breeding efficiency. Matooke (AAA) and Mchare (AA) bananas are genetically distinct but belong to the same genetic complex, they referred to as EACBs. Seed set patterns in ‘Enzirabahima’ (AAA), ‘Mshale’ (AA) and ‘Nshonowa’ (AA) all with residual fertility were examined after hand pollination with a highly male fertile wild banana ‘Calcutta 4’ (AA). Results: Seed set in ‘Enzirabahima’ is predominant in distal hands. Mchare cultivars have a slightly more even distribution of seeds in their hands compared to ‘Enzirabahima.’ There is a gradual increase in seed set from proximal to distal hands with a slight drop in the last hand. This pattern is more definite in ‘Enzirabahima’ and ‘Mshale’ while ‘Nshonowa’ has a somewhat inconsistent pattern. There is also a drop in seed set per 100 fruits per hand from small to larger bunches. However, larger bunches have a higher pollination success compared to smaller bunches. They therefor set more seed on 100 fruits per hand and per bunch basis if bunches without seed are accounted for. Pollination success rate increases from smaller to larger bunches of EACBs. Seed set is biased toward the distal third part of fruits of examined EACBs as well tetraploid Matooke hybrid ‘401K-1’ (AAAA) and improved diploid ‘Zebrina’ GF (AA) that were used for comparison. In comparison, in the highly female fertile ‘Calcutta 4,’ seed set is along the entire length of the fruit. Conclusion: Seed set bias in the distal hands and distal end of fruits suggests a systematic mechanism rather than a random occurrence. It is expected that this information will provide a foundation for increased crossbreeding efficiency in bananas.
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    Seed Set Patterns in East African Highland Cooking Bananas Are Dependent on Weather before, during and after Pollination
    (Horticulturae, 2021) Waniale, Allan; Swennen, Rony; Mukasa, Settumba B.; Tugume, Arthur K.; Kubiriba, Jerome; Tushemereirwe, Wilberforce K.; Batte, Michael; Brown, Allan; Tumuhimbise, Robooni
    Seed set in banana is influenced by weather, yet the key weather attributes and the critical period of influence are unknown. We therefore investigated the influence of weather during floral development for a better perspective of seed set increase. Three East African highland cooking bananas (EAHBs) were pollinated with pollen fertile wild banana ‘Calcutta 40 . At full maturity, bunches were harvested, ripened, and seeds extracted from fruit pulp. Pearson’s correlation analysis was then conducted between seed set per 100 fruits per bunch and weather attributes at 15-day intervals from 105 days before pollination (DBP) to 120 days after pollination (DAP). Seed set was positively correlated with average temperature (P < 0.05–P < 0.001, r = 0.196–0.487) and negatively correlated with relative humidity (RH) (P < 0.05–P < 0.001, r = 􀀀0.158–􀀀0.438) between 75 DBP and the time of pollination. After pollination, average temperature was negatively correlated with seed set in ‘Mshale’ and ‘Nshonowa’ from 45 to 120 DAP (P < 0.05–P < 0.001, r = 􀀀0.213–􀀀0.340). Correlation coefficients were highest at 15 DBP for ‘Mshale’ and ‘Nshonowa’, whereas for ‘Enzirabahima’, the highest were at the time of pollination. Maximum temperature as revealed by principal component analysis at the time of pollination should be the main focus for seed set increase.
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    Seed Set Patterns in East African Highland Cooking Bananas Show Asymmetric Distribution in Bunches and Fruits
    (Agronomy, 2021) Waniale, Allan; Swennen, Rony; Mukasa, Settumba B.; Tugume, Arthur K.; Kubiriba, Jerome; Tushemereirwe, Wilberforce K.; Batte, Michael; Brown, Allan; Tumuhimbise, Robooni
    Low female fertility in bananas is the biggest hurdle for banana breeding. The aim of this study was to determine seed set patterns in East African Highland Cooking bananas (EAHBs) to inform future decisions on a more targeted approach of increasing seed set and subsequently banana-breeding efficiency. Matooke (AAA) and Mchare (AA) bananas are genetically distinct but belong to the same genetic complex, referred to as EAHBs. Seed set patterns in “Enzirabahima” (AAA), “Mshale” (AA), and “Nshonowa” (AA), all with residual fertility, were examined after hand pollination with a highly male fertile wild banana “Calcutta 4” (AA). Seed set in “Enzirabahima” is predominant in distal hands. Mchare cultivars have a slightly more even distribution of seeds in their hands compared to “Enzirabahima”. There is a gradual increase in seed set from proximal to distal hands with a slight drop in the last hand. This pattern is more definite in “Enzirabahima” and “Mshale”, while “Nshonowa” has a somewhat inconsistent pattern. There is also a drop in seed set per 100 fruits per hand from small to larger bunches. However, larger bunches have a higher pollination success compared to smaller bunches. They therefore set more seed on 100 fruits per hand and per bunch basis, if bunches without seed are accounted for. Pollination success rate increases from smaller to larger bunches of EAHBs. Seed set is biased toward the distal third part of fruits of examined EAHBs, as well as tetraploid Matooke hybrid “401K-1” (AAAA), and improved diploid “Zebrina” GF (AA) that were used for comparison. In comparison, in the highly female fertile “Calcutta 4”, seed set is along the entire length of the fruit. Seed set bias in the distal hands and distal end of fruits suggests a systematic mechanism rather than a random occurrence. It is expected that this information will provide a foundation for increased crossbreeding efficiency in bananas.