ISHS Acta Horticulturae 967: I Workshop on Floral Biology and S-Incompatibility in Fruit Species
THE SELF-INCOMPATIBILITY FERTILIZATION SYSTEM IN ROSACEAE: AGRICULTURAL AND GENETIC ASPECTS |
| Authors: | M. Goldway, R. Stern, A. Zisovich, A. Raz, G. Sapir, D. Schnieder, R. Nyska |
| Keywords: | pollination efficiency, S-genotype, Self-compatible mutations |
| DOI: | 10.17660/ActaHortic.2012.967.7 |
| Abstract:
This review presents some of our work on the S-RNase-mediated gametophytic self-incompatibility (GSI) system with an emphasis on its significance for the cultivation of fruit trees of the Rosaceae. Due to self incompatibility, fruit trees of the Rosaceae depend on cross-pollination and therefore, commercial orchards need to contain at least two cross- compatible cultivars with synchronous flowering. In an attempt to understand the reasons for the low yield of the apple ‘Topred’ in Israel, we investigated pollination and fertilization efficiency and found that low fruit set and yield could be attributed to the semi-compatibility between ‘Topred’ and its pollen donor ‘Jonathan’ which share the S9 allele. In subsequent work with pears and plums this phenomenon recurred. We presume that in regions with suboptimal conditions for growth and pollination, such as the Mediterranean basin, there is a high probability for semi-compatibility to confer yield reduction. Moreover, due to global warming and fluctuations in weather conditions, temperate climate regions might also be susceptible to reduced yields because of semi-compatibility. Thus, to increase fertilization efficiency, full compatibility should be sought to guarantee satisfactory yields. Nonetheless, for ‘Spadona’ grown in Israel a suitable fully compatible pollinator is lacking. Therefore seedlings of wild Syrian pear and Japanese pear cultivars were S-genotyped and examined for their fertilization abilities and a few exhibited high potency as pollinators for ‘Spadona’. Conversely, some Rosaceae cultivars are self compatible (SC) due to mutations. For example, in apricot (Prunus armeniaca), the Sc-SFB allele is mutated and in loquat (Eriobotrya japonica), the S6 locus carries a mutation that confers SC. The SC mutations not only provide markers for breeding SC cultivars, but also contribute to reveal the GSI system which is not fully understood. | |
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