Proceedings of the XLVII Italian Society of Agricultural Genetics - SIGA Annual Congress

Verona, Italy - 24/27 September, 2003

ISBN 88-900622-4-X

Poster Abstract - 1.55

GENE EXPRESSION ANALYSIS IN GRAPES: THE CASE OF BERRY RIPENING

A. FERRARINI*, M. CRESPAN**, M. PEZZOTTI*, A. COSTACURTA**, C. LORENZONI***, M. DELLEDONNE*

*) Università degli Studi di Verona, Dipartimento Scientifico e Tecnologico, Strada Le Grazie 15, 37134 Verona

**) Istituto Sperimentale per la Viticoltura, Via 28 Aprile 26, 31015 Conegliano Veneto, Treviso

***) Istituto di Botanica e Genetica Vegetale, Università Cattolica S.C., Via Emilia Parmense 84, 29100 Piacenza

grape, ripening, AFLP-TP

Grape cultivation and wine production are the most remunerative sectors of Italian agriculture. Wine quality is strictly connected to grape quality and it is the result of a complex interplay of physiological, genetic and environmental factors. Recent development of molecular biology has given us the tools to examine them at a molecular level. Among these tools AFLP-TP is a very powerful expression profiles analysis technique based on PCR, characterized by high sensitivity and response linearity. These features permit to detect also poorly represented transcripts and little expression differences.

We are using AFLP-TP to analyse transcript profiles during the ripening of berry in two varieties of Vitis vinifera: “Manzoni bianco” (white) and “Refosco” (red). The aim of this work is to identify genes differentially expressed during berry ripening and genes that are specificly activated in each variety during the ripening process. Berry samples were collected from preveraison to the completion of ripening of the berry. Skin and flesh from berry are analysed separately and transcription profiles from different developmental stages of the two varietis are compared to each other. Fragments corresponding to the transcripts identified as differentially expressed are sequenced and/or cloned and genes corresponding to the sequenced fragments are identified by homology searches on public databases.