The narrow genetics of most crops is a fundamental vulnerability to food security. This makes wild crop relatives a strategic resource of genetic diversity that can be used for crop improvement and adaptation to new agricultural challenges. Here, we uncover the contribution of one wild species accession, Arachis cardenasii GKP 10017, to the peanut crop (Arachis hypogaea) that was initiated by complex hybridizations in the 1960s and propagated by international seed exchange. However, until this study, the global scale of the dispersal of genetic contributions from this wild accession had been obscured by the multiple germplasm transfers, breeding cycles, and unrecorded genetic mixing between lineages that had occurred over the years. By genetic analysis and pedigree research, we identified A. cardenasii–enhanced, disease-resistant cultivars in Africa, Asia, Oceania, and the Americas. These cultivars provide widespread improved food security and environmental and economic benefits. This study emphasizes the importance of wild species and collaborative networks of international expertise for crop improvement. However, it also highlights the consequences of the implementation of a patchwork of restrictive national laws and sea changes in attitudes regarding germplasm that followed in the wake of the Convention on Biological Diversity. Today, the botanical collections and multiple seed exchanges which enable benefits such as those revealed by this study are drastically reduced. The research reported here underscores the vital importance of ready access to germplasm in ensuring long-term world food security.

大多数作物的狭隘遗传是粮食安全的一个根本弱点。这使得野生作物近缘种成为遗传多样性的战略资源，可用于作物改良和适应新的农业挑战。在这里，我们发现了一种野生物种种质Arachis cardenasii GKP 10017 对花生作物（Arachis hypogaea) 由 1960 年代的复杂杂交发起，并通过国际种子交换传播。然而，在这项研究之前，由于多年来发生的多种种质转移、育种周期和未记录的谱系之间的遗传混合，这种野生种质遗传贡献的全球分布范围已经模糊不清。通过遗传分析和系谱研究，我们确定了A. cardenasii– 非洲、亚洲、大洋洲和美洲的增强型抗病品种。这些栽培品种提供了广泛改善的粮食安全以及环境和经济效益。这项研究强调了野生物种和国际专业知识合作网络对作物改良的重要性。然而，它也强调了在《生物多样性公约》之后实施一系列限制性国家法律和对种质的态度发生巨大变化的后果。今天，能够带来诸如本研究揭示的益处的植物收藏和多种种子交换已大大减少。此处报告的研究强调了随时获取种质资源对于确保长期世界粮食安全的重要性。