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ARS Home » Pacific West Area » Corvallis, Oregon » Horticultural Crops Research Unit » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #192015

Title: FRUIT QUALITY OF TRANSGENIC ‘MEEKER’ RASPBERRY WITH RESISTANCE TO RASPBERRY BUSHY DWARF VIRUS

Author
item MAHLER, SARAH - OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY
item QIAN, MICHAEL - OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY
item Martin, Robert

Submitted to: Acta Horticulturae
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/8/2006
Publication Date: 5/1/2006
Citation: Mahler, S., Qian, M., Martin, R.R. 2006. Fruit quality of transgenic ‘Meeker’ raspberry with resistance to raspberry bushy dwarf virus. Acta Horticulturae.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Genetic modifications have been made to ‘Meeker’ red raspberries in an effort to develop resistance to RBDV while maintaining the desirable characteristics of ‘Meeker’ including sweetness, aroma profile and machine harvestability. Transgenic and wild-type ‘Meeker’ plants were grown in Oregon and Washington to compare the fruit quality under different climatic conditions over several years and to determine field resistance. After six field seasons, only one of the transgenic lines was still completely free of RBDV under extreme disease pressure. This transgenic line, along with four other lines that were less than 100% infected after six years in the field, was not infected with RBDV by grafting after three attempts. Fruit quality indicators such as °Brix, titratable acidity, and sugar and organic acid profiles were performed on fruit from wild-type and five transgenic lines of ‘Meeker’ raspberries grown in Oregon and Washington for the years 2004 and 2005. Significant differences (p<0.05) were found between years for all tests performed. °Brix and titratable acidity were also significantly affected by locations with berries grown in Washington having higher acid and lower °Brix than Oregon. Statistical analysis demonstrated that all five RBDV-resistant transgenic lines were similar to the wild type 'Meeker' red raspberry. Experimental results showed that fruit quality is affected by season and growing environments. Additionally, the five transgenic lines behaved similarly to the wild-type ‘Meeker’ raspberry. These results demonstrated that the transgenic RBDV-resistant lines of ‘Meeker’ could serve as a replacement for the wild type ‘Meeker’ red raspberry provided that the fruit was accepted in the marketplace.