Advanced Innovative Tools in Lemon (Citrus limon L.) Breeding

Abstract

Lemon ( Citrus limon L. Burm. F.; Rutaceae) is one of the most important commercial and nutritional fruits in the world. Therefore, it needs to be improved for the diverse needs of consumers and crop breeders. Breeders have attempted to eliminate undesirable characteristics in plants and develop new varieties with desired characteristics that meet the needs of farmer and consumer by using different breeding techniques. In lemon breeding, seedlessness or with fewer seeds, resistance or tolerance to biotic and abiotic stress, acidity, yield, quality and early- or late-ripening are the most desired features and topics. Lemon improvement through conventional breeding is time consuming and cumbersome. Moreover, it has obstacles such as the high degree of heterozygosis due to frequent gene mutations either in reproductive or somatic cells and long juvenility in conventional breeding. In recent years, both conventional and molecular breeding techniques have been used to obtain new lemon varieties. In particular, the use of molecular techniques is rapidly increasing in an attempt to reduce the difficulties faced in conventional breeding like specific reproductive physiology of lemon and protracted length of time. In this chapter, conventional and advanced lemon breeding techniques are evaluated and discussed. In addition, emergent methods and technologies are evaluated to advance basic and applied lemon-breeding methods and to suggest directions for future research.