Articles
A marker-trait association analysis to unlock the genetic determinism of tolerance towards bot gummosis disease in lemon
Article number
1454_28
Pages
203 – 206
Language
English
Abstract
Citrus consists of several species of economic importance (sweet orange, mandarin, lemon and limes, grapefruit, pumelo) cultivated all over the world and threatened by several biotic and abiotic stresses.
In Mediterranean environments, citrus bot gummosis is a widely distributed disease, with symptoms consisting of bark cracking, gummosis of main branches and wood necrosis. Neofusicoccum parvum, belonging to the Botryosphaeriaceae, is one of the main pathogens causing the disease.
To unlock the genetic determinism of tolerance towards citrus bot gummosis, a marker-trait association study was implemented on a lemon segregating population consisting of 112 individuals obtained by crossing lemon ‘Interdonato’ and lemon ‘Femminello Siracusano 2Kr’. Phenotyping was performed through a detached-twig assay in which eight 20-cm-long detached twigs per genotype were inoculated with a mycelial plug of N. parvum. Twigs were incubated in plastic boxes and maintained in a growth chamber at 25°C for five days.
The mean necrotic lesion length was calculated after digital assessment, revealing a huge variability ranging from 0.53 to 14.65 cm within the segregating population.
Genotyping was performed by implementing the single primer enrichment technology (SPET) and quantitative trait loci (QTL) analysis highlighted significant marker trait association for mean necrosis length with a QTL located in chromosome 6 (lod significance threshold = 3.70), in a region where 5 SNP (single nucleotide polymorphism) markers were also identified.
These results represent a valuable contribution to the genetic improvement of lemon, aimed at enhancing crop resilience and promoting the sustainability of its cultivation.
In Mediterranean environments, citrus bot gummosis is a widely distributed disease, with symptoms consisting of bark cracking, gummosis of main branches and wood necrosis. Neofusicoccum parvum, belonging to the Botryosphaeriaceae, is one of the main pathogens causing the disease.
To unlock the genetic determinism of tolerance towards citrus bot gummosis, a marker-trait association study was implemented on a lemon segregating population consisting of 112 individuals obtained by crossing lemon ‘Interdonato’ and lemon ‘Femminello Siracusano 2Kr’. Phenotyping was performed through a detached-twig assay in which eight 20-cm-long detached twigs per genotype were inoculated with a mycelial plug of N. parvum. Twigs were incubated in plastic boxes and maintained in a growth chamber at 25°C for five days.
The mean necrotic lesion length was calculated after digital assessment, revealing a huge variability ranging from 0.53 to 14.65 cm within the segregating population.
Genotyping was performed by implementing the single primer enrichment technology (SPET) and quantitative trait loci (QTL) analysis highlighted significant marker trait association for mean necrosis length with a QTL located in chromosome 6 (lod significance threshold = 3.70), in a region where 5 SNP (single nucleotide polymorphism) markers were also identified.
These results represent a valuable contribution to the genetic improvement of lemon, aimed at enhancing crop resilience and promoting the sustainability of its cultivation.
Authors
C. Catalano, M. Di Guardo, G. Gusella, L.P. Luca, G. La Quatra, S. Seminara, M. Cortese, G. Polizzi, S. La Malfa, G. Distefano, A. Gentile
Keywords
Citrus limon, canker, gummosis, phenotyping, QTLs
Groups involved
- Division Plant Genetic Resources, Breeding and Biotechnology
- Working Group Genetic Transformation and Gene Editing
- Working Group Horticultural Biotechnology and Breeding
- Division Ornamental Plants
- Division Vegetables, Roots and Tubers
- Division Temperate Tree Fruits
- Division Vine and Berry Fruits
- Division Horticulture for Development
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