Dissertation
UNDERSTANDING THE GENETICS OF PEDICEL-FRUIT RETENTION FORCE IN SWEET CHERRY (PRUNUS AVIUM L.)
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Washington State University
01/2013
Handle:
https://hdl.handle.net/2376/110003
Abstract
Sweet cherry (<italic>Prunus avium</italic> L.) is a labor-intensive fruit crop due to hand harvesting. To enable adoption of mechanical harvest, it is necessary to develop new sweet cherry cultivars with low pedicel-fruit retention force (PFRF). This research aimed to identify the genetic mechanisms underlying PFRF and key fruit traits [soluble solids content (SSC) and titratable acidity (TA)] to facilitate developing new high quality stem-less cherries. Initial phenotyping of PFRF and fruit quality attributes showed minimal correlations, highlighting the possibility to combine both low PFRF and excellent fruit quality through strategic breeding. The effects of genotype, year and genotype × year interaction on PFRF were significant (<italic>p</italic> < 0.0001). The development of PFRF, fruit respiratory activity and fruit quality traits through to ripening was also investigated and the cultivars showed similar respiration pattern irrespective of abscission behavior and/or ripening time.
Quantitative trait locus (QTL) analyses were performed in FlexQTL<super>TM</super> for PFRF, SSC and TA using 2010, 2011 and 2012 phenotypic data. Six QTL for PFRF were mapped on the `Texas'(almond) x `Earlygold' (peach) <italic>Prunus</italic> reference map on linkage group (LG) 1 (one in 2011), LG 2 (one in 2010, the other in 2011 and 2012), LG 4 (one in 2012), and LG 8 (two in 2011). Three QTL for SSC were detected; one on LG 2 in 2011 and 2012, one on LG 4 in 2012 and a minor one on LG 7 in 2011. Three QTL were identified for TA; one mapped on LG 2 in 2010, the other on LG 4 in 2011 and 2012 while the third was mapped on LG 6 in 2012 . The LG 2 QTL was closely linked or co-localized between PFRF and SSC in both 2011 and 2012 while the QTL on LG 4 was closely linked or co-localized among PFRF, SSC and TA in 2012. The implications of these results are discussed in relation to breeding for PFRF and fruit quality in sweet cherry.
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Details
- Title
- UNDERSTANDING THE GENETICS OF PEDICEL-FRUIT RETENTION FORCE IN SWEET CHERRY (PRUNUS AVIUM L.)
- Creators
- Yunyang Zhao
- Contributors
- Nnadozie Oraguzie (Advisor)Amit Dhingra (Committee Member)Matthew D Whiting (Committee Member)Harold P Collins (Committee Member)
- Awarding Institution
- Washington State University
- Academic Unit
- Horticulture, Department of
- Theses and Dissertations
- Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Washington State University
- Number of pages
- 216
- Identifiers
- 99900581846901842
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Dissertation