•Identified 29 anthocyanins from red cabbage with an UPLC-DAD-MSE method.•Two previously unreported acylated peonidin anthocyanins discovered in red cabbage.•Significant variation in anthocyanin ...profiles exists between different genotypes.•Three anthocyanin fingerprints were identified by hierarchical cluster analysis.•Highly diverse anthocyanin traits and red cabbage genotypes were identified.
Acylated anthocyanins, such as those found in red cabbage, are more heat-, light-, and alkaline pH-stable than non-acylated anthocyanins, making them attractive for a variety of commercial applications. A UPLC-DAD-MSE method with an optimized chromatographic strategy was used to identify 29 red cabbage anthocyanins, predominantly acylated and glucosylated cyanidin derivatives. Anthocyanin profiles of 27 red cabbage genotypes harvested in consecutive growing seasons were measured and assessed for variation. Three unique anthocyanin profile fingerprints were identified through hierarchical clustering analysis. PCA analysis identified anthocyanin accumulation traits and genotypes with high diversity which can be utilized in future investigations into the genetic and molecular basis for anthocyanin production, acylation, and diversity.
Blueberry is well recognized as a rich source of health promoting phytochemicals such as flavonoids and phenolic acids. Multiple studies in blueberry and other crops indicated that flavonoids and ...phenolic acids function as bioactive compounds in the human body promoting multiple health effects. Despite their importance, information is limited about the levels of variation in bioactive compounds within and between ploidy level and species, and their association with fruit quality traits. Such information is crucial to define a strategy to study the genetic mechanisms controlling these traits and to select for these traits in blueberry breeding programs. Here we evaluated 33 health related phytochemicals belonging to four major groups of flavonoids and phenolic acids across 128 blueberry accessions over two years together with fruit quality traits, including fruit weight, titratable acidity, total soluble acids and pH. Highly significant variation between accessions, years, and accession by year interaction were identified for most of the traits. Cluster analysis grouped phytochemicals by their functional structure (e.g., anthocyanins, flavanols, flavonols, and phenolic acids). Multivariate analysis of the traits resulted in separation of diploid, tetraploid and hexaploid accessions. Broad sense heritability of the traits estimated in 100 tetraploid accessions, ranged from 20 to 90%, with most traits revealing moderate to high broad sense heritability (H
> 40%), suggesting that strong genetic factors control these traits. Fruit size can be estimated as a proxy of fruit weight or volume and vice versa, and it was negatively correlated with content of most of phytochemicals evaluated here. However, size-independent variation for anthocyanin content and profile (e.g., acylated vs. non-acylated anthocyanin) exists in the tetraploid accessions and can be explored to identify other factors such as genes related to the biosynthetic pathway that control this trait. This result also suggests that metabolite concentrations and fruit size, to a certain degree can be improved simultaneously in breeding programs. Overall, the results of this study provide a framework to uncover the genetic basis of bioactive compounds and fruit quality traits and will be useful to advance blueberry-breeding programs focusing on integrating these traits.
Aims
Zinc biofortification through agronomic and/or genetic approaches is one of the strategies to enrich food with this essential element to fulfil nutritional requirements in poor diets. This study ...aimed to unravel the physiological basis of differential tuber-Zn concentration between potato cultivars and to identify the major source(s) of Zn to the tubers.
Methods
Two potato cultivars, accumulating high (Lady Rosetta) and low (Cara) tuber-Zn, were evaluated and the patterns of biomass and Zn accumulation between organs assessed over the growth period. Furthermore, Zn partition in reciprocal grafted plants and in sixteen F
1
genotypes following a cross between those cultivars was assessed at harvest.
Results
The cultivars differed in Zn-concentration, Zn-content and biomass partitioning between organs, although total plant-Zn content was comparable (4.7 and 5.1 mg Zn/plant for Cara and Lady Rosetta, respectively). At harvest the relative amount of Zn retained in roots, stems, leaves and tubers was 2 %,25 %,5 % and 68 % for Cara and 1 %,17 %,5 % and 77 % for Lady Rosetta. The differential tuber-Zn was associated with internal Zn distribution between shoots and tubers. Lady Rosetta translocated higher amounts of Zn to the tubers while Cara accumulated relatively more Zn in the stems associated with higher stem biomass. Remobilization of Zn from leaves and stems, and continuous root to xylem-phloem transfers during tuber bulking were the major sources of Zn supply to the tubers.
Conclusions
This study suggests that the potato stem plays an important role in regulating Zn distribution and also as a site for Zn deposition.
Abstract
The genus Vaccinium L. (Ericaceae) contains premium berryfruit crops, including blueberry, cranberry, bilberry, and lingonberry. Consumption of Vaccinium berries is strongly associated with ...various potential health benefits, many of which are attributed to the relatively high concentrations of flavonoids, including the anthocyanins that provide the attractive red and blue berry colors. Because these phytochemicals are increasingly appealing to consumers, they have become a crop breeding target. There has been substantial recent progress in Vaccinium genomics and genetics together with new functional data on the transcriptional regulation of flavonoids. This is helping to unravel the developmental control of flavonoids and identify genetic regions and genes that can be selected for to further improve Vaccinium crops and advance our understanding of flavonoid regulation and biosynthesis across a broader range of fruit crops. In this update we consider the recent progress in understanding flavonoid regulation in fruit crops, using Vaccinium as an example and highlighting the significant gains in both genomic tools and functional analysis.
Key message
Cd is a toxic metal, whilst Zn is an essential for plant and human health. Both can accumulate in potato tubers. We examine the genetic control of this process.
The aim of this study was ...to map quantitative trait loci (QTLs) influencing tuber concentrations of cadmium (Cd) and zinc (Zn). We developed a segregating population comprising 188 F
1
progeny derived from crossing two tetraploid cultivars exhibiting divergent tuber-Cd-accumulation phenotypes. These progeny were genotyped using the SolCap 8303 SNP array, and evaluated for Cd, Zn, and maturity-related traits. Linkage and QTL mapping were performed using TetraploidSNPMap software, which incorporates all allele dosage information. The final genetic map comprised 3755 SNP markers with average marker density of 2.94 per cM. Tuber-Cd and Zn concentrations were measured in the segregating population over 2 years. QTL mapping identified four loci for tuber-Cd concentration on chromosomes 3, 5, 6, and 7, which explained genetic variance ranging from 5 to 33%, and five loci for tuber-Zn concentration on chromosome 1, 3, 5, and, 6 explaining from 5 to 38% of genetic variance. Among the QTL identified for tuber-Cd concentration, three loci coincided with tuber-Zn concentration. The largest effect QTL for both tuber-Cd and Zn concentration coincided with the maturity locus on chromosome 5 where earliness was associated with increased tuber concentration of both metals. Coincident minor-effect QTL for Cd and Zn sharing the same direction of effect was also found on chromosomes 3 and 6, and these were unrelated to maturity The results indicate partially overlapping genetic control of tuber-Cd and Zn concentration in the cross, involving both maturity-related and non-maturity-related mechanisms.
In the present study, we applied a novel high-throughput in vitro gastrointestinal digestion model to phenotype bioaccessibility of phenolics in a diverse germplasm collection representing ...cultivated highbush blueberries. Results revealed significant (P < 0.05) differences between accessions, years, and accession by year interaction for relative and absolute bioaccessibility of flavonoids and phenolic acids. Broad sense heritability estimates revealed low to moderate inheritances of relative and absolute bioaccessibility, suggesting that besides environmental variables, genetics factors could control bioaccessibility of phenolics. Acylated anthocyanins had significantly higher relative bioaccessibility than non-acylated anthocyanins. Correlation analysis indicated that relative bioaccessibility did not show significant association with fruit quality or raw concentration of metabolites. The study also identified accessions that have high relative and absolute bioaccessibility values. Overall, combining the bioaccessibility of phenolics with genetic and genomic approaches will enable the identification of genotypes and genetic factors influencing these traits in blueberry.
Summary
Understanding chromosome recombination behavior in polyploidy species is key to advancing genetic discoveries. In blueberry, a tetraploid species, the line of evidences about its genetic ...behavior still remain poorly understood, owing to the inter‐specific, and inter‐ploidy admixture of its genome and lack of in depth genome‐wide inheritance and comparative structural studies.
Here we describe a new high‐quality, phased, chromosome‐scale genome of a diploid blueberry, clone W85. The genome was integrated with cytogenetics and high‐density, genetic maps representing six tetraploid blueberry cultivars, harboring different levels of wild genome admixture, to uncover recombination behavior and structural genome divergence across tetraploid and wild diploid species.
Analysis of chromosome inheritance and pairing demonstrated that tetraploid blueberry behaves as an autotetraploid with tetrasomic inheritance. Comparative analysis demonstrated the presence of a reciprocal, heterozygous, translocation spanning one homolog of chr‐6 and one of chr‐10 in the cultivar Draper. The translocation affects pairing and recombination of chromosomes 6 and 10. Besides the translocation detected in Draper, no other structural genomic divergences were detected across tetraploid cultivars and highly inter‐crossable wild diploid species.
These findings and resources will facilitate new genetic and comparative genomic studies in Vaccinium and the development of genomic assisted selection strategy for this crop.
Pineapple (
(L.) Merr.) is the second most important tropical fruit crop globally, and 'MD2' is the most important cultivated variety. A high-quality genome is important for molecular-based breeding, ...but available pineapple genomes still have some quality limitations. Here, PacBio and Hi-C data were used to develop a new high-quality MD2 assembly and gene prediction. Compared to the previous MD2 assembly, major improvements included a 26.6-fold increase in contig N50 length, phased chromosomes, and >6000 new genes. The new MD2 assembly also included 161.6 Mb additional sequences and >3000 extra genes compared to the F153 genome. Over 48% of the predicted genes harbored potential deleterious mutations, indicating that the high level of heterozygosity in this species contributes to maintaining functional alleles. The genome was used to characterize the FAR1-RELATED SEQUENCE (FRS) genes that were expanded in pineapple and rice. Transposed and dispersed duplications contributed to expanding the numbers of these genes in the pineapple lineage. Several AcFRS genes were differentially expressed among tissue-types and stages of flower development, suggesting that their expansion contributed to evolving specialized functions in reproductive tissues. The new MD2 assembly will serve as a new reference for genetic and genomic studies in pineapple.
Potatoes grown in soil with high Cd concentrations can accumulate high levels of Cd in the tubers. Although there is significant environmental variation involved in the trait of crop uptake of Cd, ...there are also distinctive cultivar differences. In order to understand this differential Cd accumulation mechanism, two potato cultivars were chosen that accumulate high and low levels of Cd in tubers. The patterns of Cd concentration, Cd content and dry weight accumulation of the two cultivars were examined at different stages of plant growth. The data suggest that differences in total Cd uptake and in Cd partitioning among organs are the mechanisms governing differential Cd-tuber accumulation in the two cultivars. The low tuber-Cd accumulator exhibited lower root-to-shoot and shoot-to-tuber translocation driven by higher root and shoot biomass that retained more Cd in roots and shoots, respectively, reducing its movement to the tubers. Higher remobilization and more efficient tuber loading was observed in the high tuber-Cd accumulator, indicating that remobilization of Cd from leaves to tubers was a major factor, not only in tuber-Cd loading, but also in the establishment of differential tuber-Cd levels. Regardless of cultivar differences, the concentration of Cd in the tuber was very low compared to that in other organs suggesting that, despite its high phloem mobility, Cd tends to be sequestered in the shoots.
Abstract
Fruit quality traits play a significant role in consumer preferences and consumption in blueberry (
Vaccinium corymbosum
L). The objectives of this study were to construct a high-density ...linkage map and to identify the underlying genetic basis of fruit quality traits in blueberry. A total of 287 F
1
individuals derived from a cross between two southern highbush blueberry cultivars, ‘Reveille’ and ‘Arlen’, were phenotyped over three years (2016–2018) for fruit quality-related traits, including titratable acidity, pH, total soluble solids, and fruit weight. A high-density linkage map was constructed using 17k single nucleotide polymorphisms markers. The linkage map spanned a total of 1397 cM with an average inter-loci distance of 0.08 cM. The quantitative trait loci interval mapping based on the hidden Markov model identified 18 loci for fruit quality traits, including seven loci for fruit weight, three loci for titratable acidity, five loci for pH, and three loci for total soluble solids. Ten of these loci were detected in more than one year. These loci explained phenotypic variance ranging from 7 to 28% for titratable acidity and total soluble solid, and 8–13% for pH. However, the loci identified for fruit weight did not explain more than 10% of the phenotypic variance. We also reported the association between fruit quality traits and metabolites detected by Proton nuclear magnetic resonance analysis directly responsible for these fruit quality traits. Organic acids, citric acid, and quinic acid were significantly (
P
< 0.05) and positively correlated with titratable acidity. Sugar molecules showed a strong and positive correlation with total soluble solids. Overall, the study dissected the genetic basis of fruit quality traits and established an association between these fruit quality traits and metabolites.
PDF
