Physico-chemical characterization of banana varieties resistant to black leaf streak disease for industrial purposes

Abstract

ABSTRACT: Cultivated bananas have very low genetic diversity making them vulnerable to diseases such as black-Sigatoka leaf spot. However, the decision to adopt a new banana variety needs to be based on a robust evaluation of agronomical and physical-chemical characteristics. Here, we characterize new banana varieties resistant to black-Sigatoka leaf spot and compare them to the most widely used traditional variety (Grand Naine). Each variety was evaluated for a range of physic-chemical attributes associated with industrial processing and flavor: pH, TTA, TSS/TTA, total sugars, reducing sugars and non-reducing sugars, humidity, total solids and yield. The Thap Maeo variety had the highest potential as a substitute for the Grand Naine variety, having higher levels of total soluble solids, reducing sugars, total sugars and humidity. The Caipira and FHIA 2 varieties also performed well in comparison with the Grand Naine variety. Cluster analysis indicated that the Grand Naine variety was closely associated with varieties from the Gross Michel subgroup (Bucaneiro, Ambrosia and Calipso) and the Caipira variety, all of which come from the same AAA genomic group. It was concluded that several of the new resistant varieties could potentially substitute the traditional variety in areas affected by black-Sigatoka leaf spot disease.