Location: Plant, Soil and Nutrition Research
Project Number: 8062-21000-050-052-A
Project Type: Cooperative Agreement
Start Date: Jun 15, 2026
End Date: Jun 14, 2027
Objective:
Summary objectives are to develop genome-based tools for tomato to improve plant water use efficiency, fruit set under high temperatures to increase yield, and fruit quality to promote more consumption of wholesome foods and improved consumer health. Understanding the biological basis of these issues and developing corresponding genetic solutions will help ensure that US farmers are successful and promote the health of the US population.
Specific objectives include:
ARS will:
1) Work with US tomato breeders across the country to identify tomato lines carrying the traits of interest related to increased water use efficiency, fruit set and quality. 2) Provide DNA and seeds from lines of interest to Collaborator.
Cooperator will:
1) Develop transcriptome libraries and from the resulting data identify candidate genes related to traits of interest, in addition to molecular markers predictive of these traits. 2) Generate transgenic tomato plants to test function of genes of interest.
Approach:
ARS will use information developed by collaborator, specifically, genome sequence from tomato lines carrying desirable water use efficiency, high temperature fruit set, and fruit quality characteristics to develop molecular markers linked to desired traits. ARS will use resulting DNA marker to develop tools for targeted tomato selection to be shared with US tomato breeders. Collaborator will also develop gene-edited tomato plants for genes related to target traits identified by ARS. ARS will use resulting transgenic plants from Collaborator to test gene functions of genes associated with target traits to determine if they represent additional or better targets for tomato improvement.