Strawberry
We aim to dissect the traits associated with integrated water use efficiency (IWUE) strawberry. The initial focus is on understnading the relationship between stomatal density (SD) and IWUE via in-depth physiological measurements of stomatal function, leaf transpiration, canopy area, and crop production under both current (ambient CO2) and future climate (elevated CO2 and temperature, reduced substrate water availability) in a subset of genotypes. Further genomic and molecular analyses will identify additional non-stomatal mechanisms and genetic loci associated with IWUE.
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Develop robust phenotyping protocol for SD and other IWUE traits
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Identify genetic loci for SD and other IWUE traits in cultivated strawberry
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Develop SD marker assays and characterise candidate genes for IWUE using RNASeq.
Raspberry
The large raspberry aphid, Amphorophora idaei, is a significant pest which vectors four highly damaging viruses. To date, no genetic resistance to these viruses has been identified. Several resistance loci to A. idaei have been identified, and durable resistance can be achieved through the pyramiding of loci. The mechanisms underlying resistance to A. idaei remain unknown – though both antibiosis and antixenosis resistance have been reported. Epicuticular wax may play a significant role in resistance, but alternative mechanisms may include nutritional deficiency in the phloem sap, as in resistance to American large raspberry aphid.
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Characterise the raspberry germplasm panel for resistance to up to five aphid biotypes
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Identify resistance loci and characterise candidate genes from sequence data.
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Evaluate resistance mechanisms and determine antibiosis and antixenosis.
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Pyramid resistance loci in breeding lines to develop durable aphid resistance.
Blueberry
Nitrogen fertiliser application is the biggest source of greenhouse gas emissions in crop cultivation. It is therefore important to develop soft fruit varieties that make a good use of macronutrients as well as developing techniques to accurately assess nutrient demand from crops. Greater precision in fertiliser application has the potential to reduce grower costs by reducing inputs.
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Develop robust phenotyping protocol for nutrient use efficiency (NUE) using hyperspectral imaging
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Identify genetic loci for components of NUE in cultivated blueberry using hyperspectral imaging
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Characterise candidate genes controlling NUE using RNASeq
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Develop markers for breeding.
Honeyberry
Lonicera caerulea (honeyberry) is a novel berry crop and recently introduced to Scotland. This low-input long-lived perennial crop with high levels of pest and disease resistance has the potential to become a lucrative addition to the UK berry market. Honeyberry produces fruit which contain high levels of nutritional compounds including antioxidants, which have links to several significant potential health benefits. Due to its infancy as a commercial crop, there is limited data and research conducted in many areas and no linkage maps, markers or genome sequence, and no broad understanding of the genetic diversity of the species currently exists.
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Identify variation in honeyberry cultivars for environmental factors and pest and disease resilience
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Develop phytochemical profiles to quantify levels of healthy compounds honeyberry fruit contains
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Develop a chromosome-scale genome sequence and SNP panel for honeyberry
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Develop a genetic linkage map and map loci controlling traits of agronomic importance.
Blackberry
Blackberries are classified within the Rubus subgenus Rubus and cultivated varieties are nearly all derived from at least two or more species. To date, cultivated blackberries have been acidic and suited primarily to processing. Recently blackberries have become a berry considered for eating fresh and snacking due to the development of new cultivars from around the world now focusing on productive, large-fruiting, sweet varieties with low acidity and little astringency. This has resulted in increased demand in the UK and offers growers an alternative berry crop. Downy mildew (Peronospora sparsa) is a serious problem in the UK and other geographies. It is unknown if full resistance to this pathogen exists. Despite the potential economic importance of this crop, the development of molecular breeding has been limited.
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Characterise blackberry germplasm for under field conditions for key resilience and quality traits
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Develop a SNP genotyping panel for blackberry and determine diversity in UK germplasm
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Validate existing markers for traits of agronomic importance
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Develop a genetic linkage map and identify loci controlling traits of agronomic importance.
Tool and technology development
Data management
There has been significant progress over the past two decades in the identification of genetic loci controlling traits of agronomic importance and the development of molecular tools for their selection. With the increasing volume of data of different types, e.g., conventional phenotypic data, images, sequences, molecular markers, it is critically important to develop tools for curating such data from a diverse range of sources to ensure data integrity and security as well as for effective integration and interpretation.
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Identify and manage germplasm panels for all the five soft-fruit crops under investigation
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Develop a centrall-curated database to house and promote all outputs of the soft-fruit GIN
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Develop a set of molecular tools for breeding and a pipeline for their uptake and use.
Precision breeding technology
It is now possible to make precise modifications to crop plants by creating small mutations in specific genes and circumventing the breeding process. The Genetic Technology (Precision Breeding) Act (GTA) was passed into law on 23rd March 2023 in England, paving the way for the commercialisation of crop plants that have been developed using gene editing and cis-genesis. Gene editing allows the possibility of efficiently creating non-functional alleles, even in polyploid species such as strawberry, permitting the removal of negative characteristics without altering the remaining genetic background of the donor variety.
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Testing protocols for DNA-free gene editing in strawberry and raspberry
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Production of edited strawberry lines conferring resistance to powdery mildew
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Production of transgene-free raspberry lines with enhanced Botrytis resistance.