Abstract
Multiple quantitative trait loci (QTLs) associated with fruit size have been reported in apple (Malus domestica Borkh.); however, few have been fully characterized and/or validated. A pedigree-based QTL analysis approach was used to examine the genetic basis of fruit weight in ‘Honeycrisp’-derived germplasm. Fourteen breeding parents were represented by 814 offspring from 13 full-sib families with breeding parents ‘Honeycrisp’ and ‘Minneiska’ being highly represented. Historical fruit weight data and curated genome-wide single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) data were leveraged to map QTLs to chromosomes (Chrs) 8 and 16, which together accounted for 15% of the phenotypic variation. The Chr 16 QTL colocalized with other important Chr 16 trait loci. ‘Honeycrisp’ inherited two low fruit weight haplotypes at the Chr 8 QTL from progenitors ‘Northern Spy’ and ‘Grimes Golden’. At the Chr 16 QTL, ‘Honeycrisp’ inherited a low fruit weight haplotype from ‘Frostbite’ and a high fruit weight haplotype from ‘Duchess of Oldenburg’. The small-fruited ‘Honeycrisp’ progenitor ‘Frostbite’ had three low fruit weight haplotypes across the two QTLs. Non-additive interactions were observed at and across QTLs. Results will enable more informed parent selection and/or development of trait-predictive DNA tests for use in apple breeding programs.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Article number | 1279 |
| Journal | Agronomy |
| Volume | 12 |
| Issue number | 6 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Jun 2022 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:Funding: This research was funded by the Minnesota State Agricultural Experiment Station— University of Minnesota Projects MIN-21-040 and MIN-21-097 and by the United States Department of Agriculture—National Institute of Food and Agriculture Specialty Crop Initiative Projects 2009-51181-05808 and 2014-51181-22378.
Funding Information:
This research was funded by the Minnesota State Agricultural Experiment Station— University of Minnesota Projects MIN-21-040 and MIN-21-097 and by the United States Department of Agriculture—National Institute of Food and Agriculture Specialty Crop Initiative Projects 2009-51181-05808 and 2014-51181-22378. The authors would like to thank Baylee Miller and John Tillman for their assistance with data collection. The authors are grateful to undergraduate and graduate research assistants in the University of Minnesota apple breeding program who aided in collection of phenotypic data. In addition, the authors appreciate the insights provided by Nicholas Howard.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
Keywords
- DNA-informed breeding
- Malus domestica Borkh
- pedigree-based analysis
- quantitative trait locus