Prunus Dormancy and Breeding

A special issue of Plants (ISSN 2223-7747). This special issue belongs to the section "Plant Genetics, Genomics and Biotechnology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 April 2024) | Viewed by 6462

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Centro de Edafología y Biología Aplicada del Segura (CEBAS-CSIC), Campus Universitario de Espinardo, E-30100 Murcia, Spain
Interests: modelling and optimization of agri-food processes; optimization in engineering and biotechnology; parameter estimation; optimal experimental design; data analysis; metaheuristics
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

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Guest Editor
Centro de Edafología y Biología Aplicada del Segura (CEBAS-CSIC), Campus Universitario de Espinardo, E-30100 Murcia, Spain
Interests: plant breeding

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Guest Editor
Centro de Edafología y Biología Aplicada del Segura (CEBAS-CSIC), Campus Universitario de Espinardo, E-30100 Murcia, Spain
Interests: molecular biology; agrochemicals; molecular markers; dormancy; flowering time; plant physiology; plant biochemistry; transcriptomics; VIGS; metabolomics; LC–MS; GC–MS
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Prunus is a genus of trees and shrubs that includes a wide range of fruiting trees including those bearing plums, cherries, peaches, nectarines, apricots, almonds, and so on. More than 400 different species are classified under Prunus, and they are native to temperate regions. Many members of the genus are widely cultivated for their fruit. Like many other temperate species, Prunus species undergo a dormancy period in the autumn and winter and must be protected under potentially damaging climatic conditions. This dormancy period is overcome when a sufficient winter chill is accumulated, depending on each cultivar.

According to the forecast of the Intergovernmental Panel on the Climatic Change (IPPC), in the next 30 years, there will be an increase in the average temperatures on the planet of the order of 2°C. A lack of winter chilling is a limiting factor for the cultivation of temperate fruit trees. This will require us to release and cultivate new lower-chilling-requiring cultivars to break dormancy.

This Special Issue on “Prunus Dormancy and Breeding” aims to improve the knowledge on Prunus dormancy and on breeding strategies to face the forecasted lack of winter chill. We encourage the submission of original research papers as well as review papers dealing with new advances in Prunus adaptive genetics, genomics, genome editing techniques, population genetics, and breeding.

Dr. Jose A. Egea
Dr. David Ruiz
Dr. Raquel Sánchez-Pérez
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • fruit crops
  • fruit development
  • germplasm
  • Prunus quality
  • plant dormancy
  • plant genetics
  • plant epigenetics
  • plant genomics
  • plant biotechnology

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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13 pages, 8646 KiB  
Article
The Effect of Different Temperatures on the Viability and Senescence of Plum Ovules (Prunus domestica L.)
by Milena Đorđević, Radosav Cerović, Mekjell Meland and Milica Fotirić Akšić
Plants 2024, 13(10), 1359; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants13101359 - 14 May 2024
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Abstract
This paper reports on a study investigating the viability and senescence of plum ovules when exposed to different constant temperatures over two years. The research was conducted on the primary and secondary ovules of four plum cultivars: ‘Mallard’, ‘Edda’, ‘Jubileum’, and ‘Reeves’. The [...] Read more.
This paper reports on a study investigating the viability and senescence of plum ovules when exposed to different constant temperatures over two years. The research was conducted on the primary and secondary ovules of four plum cultivars: ‘Mallard’, ‘Edda’, ‘Jubileum’, and ‘Reeves’. The results show that the first indication of ovule viability loss was callose accumulation, which was detected using the fluorescent dye aniline blue. All cultivars had viable ovules, in different percentages, at 8 °C on the twelfth day after anthesis. However, at higher temperatures, distinct patterns emerged, indicating the adaptability of each cultivar at certain temperatures. The first indication of callose accumulation became visible at the chalazal pole. After anthesis, the ovule’s ability to remain viable gradually reduced, followed by callose deposition throughout the ovary. The cultivars ‘Edda’ and ‘Reeves’, from 6 days after anthesis onward, in both years, showed the highest percentage of nonviable ovules. In contrast, the ‘Jubileum’ cultivar demonstrated the highest percentage of viable ovules. The loss of viability of secondary ovules followed a similar pattern to that of the primary ovules in all cultivars. This research provides valuable insights into embryological processes, which can help in the following breeding programs, and to cultivate plum cultivars in Western Norway’s climate conditions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Prunus Dormancy and Breeding)
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11 pages, 1882 KiB  
Article
Chilling Requirements of Apricot (Prunus armeniaca L.) Cultivars Using Male Meiosis as a Dormancy Biomarker
by Erica Fadón, Sara Herrera, Tudor I. Gheban and Javier Rodrigo
Plants 2023, 12(17), 3025; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants12173025 - 23 Aug 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1724
Abstract
Apricot has undergone an important cultivar renewal during the last years in response to productive and commercial changes in the crop. The impact of the sharka disease (plum pox virus) prompted the release of cultivars resistant/tolerant to this virus, leading to a major [...] Read more.
Apricot has undergone an important cultivar renewal during the last years in response to productive and commercial changes in the crop. The impact of the sharka disease (plum pox virus) prompted the release of cultivars resistant/tolerant to this virus, leading to a major cultivar renewal worldwide. This has caused high variability in chilling requirements on new releases that remain unknown in many cases. In many apricot-growing areas, the lack of winter chilling is becoming a limiting factor in recent years. To deal with this situation, growers must choose cultivars well adapted to their areas. However, the information available on the agroclimatic requirements of the cultivars is very limited. To fill this gap, in this work, we have characterized the chilling requirements of 13 new apricot cultivars from Europe (France, Greece and Spain) and North America (USA) in two experimental collections in Aragón (Spain). We established the chilling period using male meiosis as a biomarker for endodormancy release over two years. Chilling requirements ranged from 51.9 Chill Portions (CP) to 70.9 CP. Knowing the chilling requirements of cultivars will help growers to select suitable cultivars adapted to the chill availability of their region. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Prunus Dormancy and Breeding)
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14 pages, 2996 KiB  
Article
Single-Bud Expression Analysis of Bud Dormancy Factors in Peach
by Ana Puertes, Helin Polat, Luis Andrés Ramón-Núñez, Matilde González, Gema Ancillo, Elena Zuriaga and Gabino Ríos
Plants 2023, 12(14), 2601; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants12142601 - 10 Jul 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1623
Abstract
Transcriptomic and gene expression analysis have greatly facilitated the identification and characterization of transcriptional regulatory factors and effectors involved in dormancy progression and other physiological processes orchestrated during bud development in peach and other temperate fruit species. Gene expression measurements are most usually [...] Read more.
Transcriptomic and gene expression analysis have greatly facilitated the identification and characterization of transcriptional regulatory factors and effectors involved in dormancy progression and other physiological processes orchestrated during bud development in peach and other temperate fruit species. Gene expression measurements are most usually based on average values from several or many individual buds. We have performed single-bud gene analysis in flower buds of peach across dormancy release using amplicons from the master regulatory DORMANCY-ASSOCIATED MADS-BOX (DAM) factors, several jasmonic acid biosynthetic genes, other genes related to flowering development, cell growth resumption, and abiotic stress tolerance. This analysis provides a close view on gene-specific, single-bud variability throughout the developmental shift from dormant to dormancy-released stages, contributing to the characterization of putative co-expression modules and other regulatory aspects in this particular tissue. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Prunus Dormancy and Breeding)
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Review

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12 pages, 39104 KiB  
Review
Overcoming Dormancy in Prunus Species under Conditions of Insufficient Winter Chilling in Israel
by Amnon Erez
Plants 2024, 13(6), 764; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants13060764 - 8 Mar 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1005
Abstract
The phenomenon of dormancy and the evolutionary causes for its development are presented together with the effects of the climatic factors: temperature and light. Shade and darkness have been found to enhance bud breaking in peach. The effects of various temperatures on chilling [...] Read more.
The phenomenon of dormancy and the evolutionary causes for its development are presented together with the effects of the climatic factors: temperature and light. Shade and darkness have been found to enhance bud breaking in peach. The effects of various temperatures on chilling accumulation, chilling negation and chilling enhancement are described. The way these are computed in the face of global warming is explained, using the dynamic model. When natural chilling is less than that required, there are ways of compensation, up to a certain level. Various horticultural, physical and chemical means to achieve this are described, including bending branches, reducing vegetative vigor, shading the orchard, sprinkling to reduce daytime temperature and the application of various chemicals to break dormancy. When winter chilling is markedly reduced and temperatures increase considerably, the use of dormancy avoidance is suggested in frost-free places. This technique can induce a new growing cycle by avoiding dormancy altogether. However, the best approach is to breed high-quality cultivars requiring much less chilling. Another aspect discussed in this work, independent of the chilling requirement, is the negative effect of heat spells in winter and spring on the abnormal development of flower buds, leading to a low level of the stone fruit set and a reduced yield. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Prunus Dormancy and Breeding)
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