Molecular markers are increasingly being deployed to accelerate genetic gain in crop plants. The objective of this study was to assess the potential of a mid-density genotyping panel for molecular applications in cowpea breeding. A core set of 2,602 targeted diversity array technology (DArTag) single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) was designed from an existing 51,128 Cowpea iSelect Consortium Array. The panel’s usefulness was assessed using 376 genotypes from different populations of known genetic backgrounds. The panel was informative, with over 78% of SNPs exceeding a minor allele frequency of 0.20. The panel decoded three stratifications in the constituted population, as was expected. Linkage disequilibrium (LD) decay was correctly depicted as slower in a biparental subset than in other populations. A known flower and seed coat color gene region was located on chromosome Vu07, suggesting that the mid-density panel may be used to hypothesize genomic regions underlying target traits in cowpea. Unexpected heterozygosity was detected in some lines and highly among F1 progenies, divulging the panel’s potential application in germplasm purity and hybridity verification. The study unveils the potential of an excellent genomic resource that can be tapped to enhance the development of improved cowpea cultivars.

https://doi.org/10.1155/2024/9912987

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Patrick Ongomhttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-5303-3602

Christian Fatokunhttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-8428-7939

Abou TOGOLAhttps://orcid.org/0000-0001-6155-8292

Ousmane Boukarhttps://orcid.org/0000-0003-0234-4264

https://doi.org/10.1155/2024/9912987

Biotech and Plant Breeding

Agronomy; Cowpea; Food Security; Grain Legumes; Plant Genetic Resources

Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms; Cowpeas; Grain Legumes; Molecular Markers

Africa; West Africa

Nigeria

Headquarters and Western Africa Hub

International Journal of Genomics