Paper record

The Spatiotemporal Genetic Architecture of Seed Vigor in Upland Cotton.

Wang L, Dai J, Zhao T, Zhao S, Wu H, Pan J, Hao Y, Nie K, Yu L, Zhu Y, Zhao X, Huang K, Zhang M, Zhao Y, Jiang Y, Wang S, Pan Y, Chen Y, Lin Y, Shi W, Deng Y, Han J, Li J, Long X, Wang J, Zhang Z, Han Z, Si Z, Ju L, Li J, Zhang T, Zhou J, Guan X.

Advanced science (Weinheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany) · 12 Jun 2026 · 10.1002/advs.76067

Abstract

Seed vigor underpins uniform crop establishment, but its dynamic genetics are understudied. Combining high-resolution temporal phenotyping and genomics in upland cotton, we used the SeedRanger platform to record 17 image-based traits every 30 min over 120 h, revealing stage-specific heritability and identifying 541 seed-vigor loci. These loci show extensive pleiotropy and temporal coordination, forming a genetic network that preserves developmental continuity; 8.9% overlap regions under domestication selection, indicating concurrent optimization with fiber yield. Functional validation of FLA2, a candidate gene underlying a dynamic QTL, implicates auxin-mediated control of radicle elongation and cotyledon development. This temporal framework exposes dynamic genetic architecture and breeding targets for high-vigor crops.

Code and data availability

The paper describes a paper-specific phenotyping dataset (85,796 SeedRanger images, 17 i-Traits across 356 cotton accessions) and custom analysis workflows, but no public deposit or authors' URL for the data or code is provided. The only availability statement requires contacting the corresponding author. The allowed-

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