International Journal of Molecular Evolution and Biodiversity, 2025, Vol.15, No.2, 73-83 http://ecoevopublisher.com/index.php/ijmeb 74 2 Sorghum as a Model Crop for Genetic Diversity Studies 2.1 Sorghum’s botanical characteristics Sorghum is a C4 grass that uses sunlight very efficiently. It grows well in dry and semi-dry places. One reason it survives in tough conditions is its strong structure. It has deep roots, thick stems, and wide leaves, which all help it handle drought (Boyles et al., 2018). Sorghum can look quite different depending on the type. Some plants are short, while others grow very tall. Their flower heads also come in different shapes-some are tight and compact, while others are more open and loose (Figure 1) (Morris et al., 2012; Enyew et al., 2021). Scientists have studied these traits a lot. They’ve found many gene locations, or loci, that affect how tall the plant grows, how its flowers are arranged, and other important features for farming. Figure 1 Diverse sorghum panicles (Adopted from Enyew et al., 2021) Image caption: (A) at early grain filling and (B) at maturity (Adopted from Enyew et al., 2021) Sorghum can grow a large amount of plant material, or biomass. This makes it useful for both food and fuel. Its grains are rich in starch, protein, and polyphenols, which are good for health (Rhodes et al., 2014). The makeup of the grain, especially the level of polyphenols, can be very different between types. These differences come from genetics. Scientists have used genome-wide association studies (GWAS) to find which parts of the genome affect these traits. Because of its many useful features and high genetic variety, sorghum is often used to study how genes control complex traits.
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