SSR-BASED ASSESSMENT OF GENETIC DIVERSITY IN BARLEY COLLECTION FROM THE STATE COMMISSION FOR VARIETY TESTING OF AGRICULTURAL CROPS OF KAZAKHSTAN

Barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) is a globally significant cereal crop with a substantial production footprint. As a versatile commodity, it serves as a primary resource for animal feed, malting, and human consumption. Genetic diversity among 49 barley accessions procured from the State Commission for Variety Testing of Agricultural Crops in Kazakhstan was assessed using a set of 21 SSR markers associated with various agronomic traits. The collection exhibited moderate genetic diversity, as indicated by a mean polymorphic information content (PIC) of 0.548 ± 0.153 and a mean Shannon's information index (I) of 0.980 ± 0.317, aligning with previously reported estimates of barley genetic variation in the World. STRUCTURE analysis identified three distinct population clusters (K = 3) using Bayesian clustering and DeltaK, which was confirmed by PCoA results. However, neighbor-joining tree analysis revealed a more detailed population structure with six distinct clusters, indicating substantial genetic diversity within the barley collection. Distinct phenotypic variations were observed among identified genetic clusters, implying a strong association between genetic diversity and agronomic traits, including plant height, kernel number per spike, and grain yield. Seven barley accessions (GSI_B_60, GSI_B_82, GSI_B_216, GSI_B_85, GSI_B_96, GSI_B_141, and GSI_B_208) forming a cluster NJ_tree_2 demonstrated the highest mean grain yield of 50.99 ± 2.95 g/ m2. This specific cluster and its constituent accessions exhibit promising potential for development into high-yielding cultivars or as a valuable source of beneficial alleles for barley breeding initiatives.