Integrating phenotypic, molecular, and bioinformatics approaches for developing drought-tolerant sesame.

Breeding climate-resilient crops with high tolerance to abiotic and biotic stresses represents a major challenge in responding to climate change. The present study evaluated new sesame lines under drought conditions, which required the implementation of multi-environment experiments (MET) with the aim of identifying the most productive and stable sesame lines combining phenotypic evaluation, SCoT-PCR markers, and bioinformatics analysis. Seed yield was assessed across 18 limited irrigation environments, revealing significant genotype-by-environment interactions. Four stable, high-yielding lines (C5-8, C6-9, C6-11, and C9-3) were identified under optimal and drought conditions using parametric and non-parametric statistics, AMMI, and GGE biplot analysis. SCoT-PCR analysis revealed a reasonable level of genetic diversity among the genotypes, with primer SCoT-21 showing the highest polymorphism (88.24%). Bioinformatics analysis of SCoT-21 and 28 amplified regions identified potential genes associated with drought tolerance, including a DNA repair helicase XPD gene and a malonyl-coenzyme: anthocyanin 5-O-glucoside-6'''-O-malonyl transferase-like gene. These findings provide valuable insights for developing drought-resistant sesame varieties and highlight the power of integrating phenotypic, molecular, and Bioinformatics approaches in crop improvement.