COUSIN: Crop Wild Relatives utilisation and conservation for sustainable agriculture

作物野生近缘种（CWRs），即驯化作物的近亲，是遗传变异的自然来源。表亲联盟认识到cwr对农业的价值，但也认识到其利用的挑战。通过表亲准备水平（crl），我们将展示在育种和农业中使用crl的路线图。我们将与五种主要作物合作：小麦、大麦、豌豆、生菜和芸苔。通过这些示范作物，我们展示了如何利用CWRs在正规化和参与式育种中克服从农场到餐桌的利益相关者当前面临的挑战。表亲联盟拥有独特的cwrr相关专业知识、数据和育种材料，使我们能够在五年的项目中覆盖从野生植物鉴定到市场准备作物的转化途径。对于每种旗舰作物，我们确定CWRs的优先性状，设计选择工具箱并将其应用于当前的育种计划，以满足当前和新出现的利益相关者的需求。设计了有效的特征鉴定协议，并将指导整个欧洲自然发生的功能和遗传性状多样性的保护。通过高通量表型、化学分型和基因分型对包括植物相关微生物组在内的优先性状进行原位和非原位鉴定。保护措施包括就地保护和移地收集，尽可能扩大性状多样性。为了方便获取优先性状信息和相应的CWR条目，将开发一个用户友好的数据门户。所有收集到的数据将提供给国家和国际资料库。通过在整个欧洲气候地区实现的农场试点和实际育种点，CWRs的价值将向利益相关者展示，并直接应用于育种者和农民，以提供适应气候变化的作物，作为实现可持续生产系统的重要手段。

Crop Wild Relatives (CWRs), i.e. the COUSINs of domesticated crops, represent a natural source of genetic variation. The COUSIN consortium recognizes the value of CWRs for agriculture, but also the challenges of their utilisation. Through the COUSIN Readiness Levels (CRLs) we will demonstrate a roadmap for the use of CWRs in breeding and farming. We will work with five flagship crops: wheat, barley, pea, lettuce and brassicas. With these exemplary crops, we demonstrate how current challenges of stakeholders from farm to fork can be overcome using CWRs in formalised and participatory breeding. The COUSIN consortium has unique CWR-related expertise, data and breeding material that allows us to cover the translational pathway from the identification of wild plants to a market ready crop in a five-year project. For each flagship crop, we identify priority traits of CWRs, design selection toolboxes and apply them in current breeding programmes in order to fulfil current and emerging stakeholders demands. Effective characterisation protocols are designed and will guide conservation of the naturally occurring functional and genetic trait diversity across Europe. Characterisation will occur in- and ex-situ through high-throughput phenotyping, chemotyping and genotyping of priority traits incl. plant-associated microbiomes. Conservation measures cover in-situ reserves and ex-situ collections with the widest possible trait diversity. For easy access of priority trait information and corresponding CWR accessions, a user-friendly data portal will be developed. All collected data will be offered for integration into national and international repositories. Through on-farm pilots and actual breeding sites realised across the European pedoclimatic regions, the value of CWRs will be demonstrated to stakeholders with direct applications for breeders and farmers to provide climate change-resilient crops as a vital means towards sustainable production systems.