Structural and Functional Genomic Approaches for Marking and Identifying Genes that Control Chilling Requirement in Apricot and Peach Trees
Authors: Abbott Albert G. , Holland Doron , Bielenberg Douglas , Reighard Gregory 
Published: December 2021

Structural and functional genomic approaches for marking and identifying genes that control chilling requirement in apricot and peach trees. Specific aims: 1) Identify and characterize the genetic nature of chilling requirement for flowering and dormancy break of vegetative shoots in Prunusgermplasm through the utilization of existing apricot (NeweYa'ar Research Center, ARO) and peach (Clemson University) genetic mapping populations; 2) Use molecular genetic mapping techniques to identify markers flanking genomic regions controlling chilling; 3) Comparatively map the regions controlling chilling requirement in apricot and peach and locate important genomic regions influencing chilling requirement on the Prunus functional genomic database as an initial step for identification of candidate genes; 4) Develop from the functional genomics database a set of markers facilitating the development of cultivars with optimized chilling requirements for improved and sustained fruit production in warm-winter environments. Dormant apricot (prunus armeniaca L.) and peach [Prunus persica (L.) Batsch] trees require sustained exposure to low, near freezing, temperatures before vigorous floral and vegetative bud break is possible after the resumption of warm temperatures in the spring. The duration of chilling required (the chilling requirement, CR) is determined by the climatic adaptation of the particular cultivar, thus limiting its geographic distribution. This limitation is particularly evident when attempting to introduce superior cultivars to regions with very warm winter temperatures, such as Israel and the coastal southern United States. The physiological mechanism of CR is not understood and although breeding programs deliberately manipulate CR in apricot and peach crosses, robust closely associated markers to the trait are currently not available. We used segregating populations of apricot (100 Fl individuals, NeweYa'ar Research Center, ARO) and peach (378 F2 individuals, Clemson University) to discover several discreet genomic loci that regulate CR and blooming date. We used the extensive genomic/genetic resources available for Prunus to successfully combine our apricot and peach genetic data and identify five QTL with strong effects that are conserved between species as well as several QTL that are unique to each species. We have identified markers in the key major QTL regions for testing in breeding programs which we are carrying out currently; we have identified an initial set of candidate genes using the peach physical/transcriptome map and whole peach genome sequences and we are testing these currently to identify key target genes for manipulation in breeding programs. Our collaborative work to date has demonstrated the following: 1) CR in peach and apricot is predominantly controlled by a limited number ofQTL loci, seven detected in a peach F2 derived map comprising 65% of the character and 12 in an apricot Fl map comprising 71.6% and 55.6% of the trait in the Perfection and A. 1740 parental maps, respectively and that peach and apricot appear in our initial maps to share five genomic intervals containing potentially common QTL. 2) Application of common anchor markers of the Prunus/peach, physical/genetic map resources has allowed us not only to identify the shared intervals but also to have immediately available some putative candidate gene information from these intervals, the EVG region on LG1 in peach the TALY 1 region in apricot on LG2 in peach; and several others involved in vernalization pathways (LGI and LG7). 3) Mapped BACcontigs are easily defined from the complete physical map resources in peach through the common SSR markers that anchor our CR maps in the two species, 4) Sequences of BACs in these regions can be easily mined for additional polymorphic markers to use in MAS applications.