Abstract
Grapevine (Vitis vinifera L.) is an economically important crop that needs to comply with high quality standards for fruit, juice and wine production. Intense plant protection is required to avoid fungal damage. Grapevine cultivars with loose cluster architecture enable reducing protective treatments due to their enhanced resilience against fungal infections, such as Botrytis cinerea-induced gray mold. A recent study identified transcription factor gene VvGRF4 as determinant of pedicel length, an important component of cluster architecture, in samples of two loose and two compact quasi-isogenic ‘Pinot Noir’ clones. Here, we extended the analysis to 12 differently clustered ‘Pinot Noir’ clones from five diverse clonal selection programs. Differential gene expression of these clones was studied in three different locations over three seasons. Two phenotypically opposite clones were grown at all three locations and served for standardization. Data were correlated with the phenotypic variation of cluster architecture sub-traits. A set of 14 genes with consistent expression differences between loosely and compactly clustered clones—independent from season and location—was newly identified. These genes have annotations related to cellular growth, cell division and auxin metabolism and include two more transcription factor genes, PRE6 and SEP1-like. The differential expression of VvGRF4 in relation to loose clusters was exclusively found in ‘Pinot Noir’ clones. Gene expression studies were further broadened to phenotypically contrasting F1 individuals of an interspecific cross and OIV reference varieties of loose cluster architecture. This investigation confirmed PRE6 and six growth-related genes to show differential expression related to cluster architecture over genetically divergent backgrounds.
Highlights
Grapevine (Vitis vinifera L.) is one of the most important fruit crops at global scale
We explored the variation of cluster architecture in an extended set of twelve Pinot Noir’ (PN) clones from five different selection lines and linked it to the differential transcriptional activity of genes selected from the previous RNA-Seq study
The ratio ‘berry number/rachis length’ (Hed et al 2009) and indices CI-12 and CI-18 (Tello and Ibáñez 2014) were used to categorize the PN clones according to their cluster density
Summary
Grapevine (Vitis vinifera L.) is one of the most important fruit crops at global scale. The worldwide grape production reached 74 million tons in 2018 (OIV 2019). The world gross production value for grapes in 2016 was above 67.5 billion USD (FAOSTAT 2016). Regardless of the use as wine grapes, table grapes or dried fruits (raisins), only highquality fruits are acceptable for marketing. V. vinifera grapevine varieties are susceptible to several pathogens. Viticulture requires intense application of plant protection products (PPP) to meet the market’s demands. Fungicides are unavoidable to control the pathogens (Pertot et al 2017) causing powdery mildew, Erysiphe necator Uncinula necator, (Schw.) Burr), downy mildew, Plasmopara viticola The use of PPP, irrespective of their inorganic (copper and sulfur) or synthetic origin, contributes to a decrease in biodiversity and raises
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