Diversity of common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) lines can disclose accessions of interest for breeding and enables breeders to examine different traits of interest at the morphological and nutritional level. This study aimed to determine variation in macro- and microelements, selected nutrients and total phenolics in seeds of the most prospective common bean breeding material. Seeds of eleven common bean breeding lines from different filial generations (F5 – F7) were produced under an open-field experiment during the growing season 2020. Characterisation of seeds comprised a multi-elemental analysis, determination of the dry matter, moisture, proteins, crude proteins, crude fats and total phenolics (TPC). The macro- (N, K, Mg, P, Ca, S) and microelement (Na, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Cu, Zn, Mo) content varied considerably among the studied common bean breeding lines. The highest coefficient of variation among the macroelements was determined for N and among the microelements - for Na. Proteins ranged from 17.8 to 27.9% and crude fats varied from 1.0 to 1.3%. The protein content is one of the most important common bean quality parameters and non-destructive protein determination using a whole seed analyser Infratec NOVA showed to be a reliable solution despite dealing with small samples of 35-40 middle-sized seeds. TPC varied from 1.5 to 4.1 mg GAE g-1. Correlation between crude protein determined using the Kjeldahl method and protein determined non-destructively was very high. Higher variance was noticed for mineral content and TPC, which can potentially serve as a basis for further breeding. The common bean breeding material of different filial generations examined in this study showed great potential for registration of new varieties in the next few years.

26.3.2021