Articles
Applicability of microsatellite markers in estimating fertilization success in Norwegian apple orchards
Article number
1449_5
Pages
37 – 44
Language
English
Abstract
Microsatellite markers have previously proven to be efficient in identifying successful pollinizers in commercial pear and plum orchards in Norway.
However, using a similar approach in apple is more complicated because Norwegian commercial apple orchards are usually surrounded by numerous main cultivars and pollinizers.
In addition, traditional apple cultivars grown on nearby farms, as well as natural crabapple populations can serve as pollen donors, making positive pollinizer identification more difficult.
In order to investigate the applicability of microsatellite markers in estimating the fertilization success among apple cultivars and its pollinizers, in 2020 a pilot study was conducted within several apple orchards located in southwestern Norway.
The study entailed a genetic characterization of 105 apple embryos, collected from the fruits of seven main cultivars (‘Discovery’, ‘Elstar’, ‘Julyred’, ‘Katja’, ‘Rubinstep’, ‘Summerred’ and ‘Vista Bella’) using 15 polymorphic microsatellite markers.
The same marker set was used on all main cultivars and all the pollinizers present in the orchards.
Consequent paternity analyses successfully identified the individual pollen donor for 96% of analyzed apple embryos.
The number of successful pollinizers varied greatly depending on the cultivar, with ‘Aroma’ having a single pollen donor for all its embryos and ‘Rubinstep’ embryos displaying a very diverse set of identified pollinizers.
The obtained results clearly indicate that the employed microsatellite marker set can be recommended for a large-scale study on apple pollinizer efficacy.
However, using a similar approach in apple is more complicated because Norwegian commercial apple orchards are usually surrounded by numerous main cultivars and pollinizers.
In addition, traditional apple cultivars grown on nearby farms, as well as natural crabapple populations can serve as pollen donors, making positive pollinizer identification more difficult.
In order to investigate the applicability of microsatellite markers in estimating the fertilization success among apple cultivars and its pollinizers, in 2020 a pilot study was conducted within several apple orchards located in southwestern Norway.
The study entailed a genetic characterization of 105 apple embryos, collected from the fruits of seven main cultivars (‘Discovery’, ‘Elstar’, ‘Julyred’, ‘Katja’, ‘Rubinstep’, ‘Summerred’ and ‘Vista Bella’) using 15 polymorphic microsatellite markers.
The same marker set was used on all main cultivars and all the pollinizers present in the orchards.
Consequent paternity analyses successfully identified the individual pollen donor for 96% of analyzed apple embryos.
The number of successful pollinizers varied greatly depending on the cultivar, with ‘Aroma’ having a single pollen donor for all its embryos and ‘Rubinstep’ embryos displaying a very diverse set of identified pollinizers.
The obtained results clearly indicate that the employed microsatellite marker set can be recommended for a large-scale study on apple pollinizer efficacy.
Publication
Authors
M. Meland, M. Fotirić Akić, O. Frøynes, L. Lasić, N. Pojskić, F. Gai
Keywords
pollinizers, embryos, paternity analyses, Malus domestica Borkh., cultivars
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