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| Authors: | B. Mezzetti, O. Silvestroni, E. Costantini, T. Pandolfini, A. Spena |
| Keywords: | regeneration, genetic transformation, grape, shoot fruitfulness, quality |
Abstract:
An alternative method based on regeneration of table grape (Vitis vinifera) was developed.
This was accomplished by promoting the formation of meristematic bulk (MB) tissue with a high regenerative capacity, using adventitious shoots as the starting material.
The regeneration efficiency of slices prepared from MB tissue was higher than that of either lateral axillary shoots or leaves.
These slices were used for Agrobacterium-mediated transformation of two table grape cultivars (‘Silcora’ and ‘Thompson Seedless’) with the auxin synthesising gene DefH9-iaaM. The aforementioned chimeric gene has been shown to confer parthenocarpic fruit development to several species, improving both qualitative and quantitative fruit production of tomato and eggplant, strawberry and raspberry.
After rooting and greenhouse acclimation, transgenic plants were transferred to the field.
The expression of DefH9-iaaM gene was detected in transgenic flower buds of both cultivars which corresponded to an increased auxin content of the DefH9-iaaM clones in comparison with the control.
After three years of field cultivation, DefH9-iaaM grape plants were phenotypically homogeneous and did not show any morphological alterations in vegetative growth.
Depending on the cultivar, the expression of the iaaM gene influenced shoot fruitfulness, cluster morphology and berry quality, in the third year of production.
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