Characterization of genetic variation and yield heterosis in Cucumis melo
Authors: Gur Amit , Buckler Edward , Burger Joseph , Tadmor Yaakov , Klapp Iftach 
Published: January 2022

Project objectives: 1) Characterization of variation for yield heterosis in melon using Half-Diallele (HDA) design. 2) Development and implementation of image-based yield phenotyping in melon. 3) Characterization of genetic, epigenetic and transcriptional variation across 25 founder lines and selected hybrids. The epigentic part of this objective was modified during the course of the project: instead of characterization of chromatin structure in a single melon line through genome-wide mapping of nucleosomes using MNase-seq approach, we took advantage of rapid advancements in single-molecule sequencing and shifted the focus to Nanoporelong-read sequencing of all 25 founder lines. This analysis provides invaluable information on genome-wide structural variation across our diversity 4) Integrated analyses and development of prediction models Agricultural heterosis relates to hybrids that outperform their inbred parents for yield. First generation (F1) hybrids are produced in many crop species and it is estimated that heterosis increases yield by 15-30% globally. Melon (Cucumismelo) is an economically important species of The Cucurbitaceae family and is among the most important fleshy fruits for fresh consumption Worldwide. The major goal of this project was to explore the patterns and magnitude of yield heterosis in melon and link it to whole genome sequence variation. A core subset of 25 diverse lines was selected from the Newe-Yaar melon diversity panel for whole-genome re-sequencing (WGS) and test-crosses, to produce structured half-diallele design of 300 F1 hybrids (MelHDA25). Yield variation was measured in replicated yield trials at the whole-plant and at the rootstock levels (through a common-scion grafted experiments), across the F1s and parental lines. As part of this project we also developed an algorithmic pipeline for detection and yield estimation of melons from aerial-images, towards future implementation of such high throughput, cost-effective method for remote yield evaluation in open-field melons. We found extensive, highly heritable root-derived yield variation across the diallele population that was characterized by prominent best-parent heterosis (BPH), where hybrids rootstocks outperformed their parents by 38% and 56 % under optimal irrigation and drought- stress, respectively. Through integration of the genotypic data (~4,000,000 SNPs) and yield analyses we show that root-derived hybrids yield is independent of parental genetic distance. However, we mapped novel root-derived yield QTLs through genome-wide association (GWA) analysis and a multi-QTLs model explained more than 45% of the hybrids yield variation, providing a potential route for marker-assisted hybrid rootstock breeding. Four selected hybrid rootstocks are further studied under multiple scion varieties and their validated positive effect on yield performance is now leading to ongoing evaluation of their commercial potential. On the genomic level, this project resulted in 3 layers of data: 1) whole-genome short-read Illumina sequencing (30X) of the 25 founder lines provided us with 25 genome alignments and high-density melon HapMap that is already shown to be an effective resource for QTL annotation and candidate gene analysis in melon. 2) fast advancements in long-read single-molecule sequencing allowed us to shift focus towards this technology and generate ~50X Nanoporesequencing of the 25 founders which in combination with the short-read data now enable de novo assembly of the 25 genomes that will soon lead to construction of the first melon pan-genome. 3) Transcriptomic (3' RNA-Seq) analysis of several selected hybrids and their parents provide preliminary information on differentially expressed genes that can be further used to explain the root-derived yield variation. Taken together, this project expanded our view on yield heterosis in melon with novel specific insights on root-derived yield heterosis. To our knowledge, thus far this is the largest systematic genetic analysis of rootstock effects on yield heterosis in cucurbits or any other crop plant, and our results are now translated into potential breeding applications. The genomic resources that were developed as part of this project are putting melon in the forefront of genomic research and will continue to be useful tool for the cucurbits community in years to come.