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Advances in Domestication of Fruit Trees

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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 (10 December 2023) | Viewed by 11161

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Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Yosef Mizrahi

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Guest Editor

Department of Life Sciences, Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheva 8441901, Israel
Interests: domestication and introduction of wild and exotic fruit trees with emphasis on cacti

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The majority of the scientific literature concerning plant science deals with either model plants such as Arabidopsis and/or established crops. There is historical evidence that, in the past, humans used numerous wild plants for their various uses, although only few of them serve as crops today. For example, Indigenous people, for thousands of years, used many wild plants for food, feed, medicine, industry, etc. Knowledge of many of these same plants is scarce and overlooked in the scientific community; however, these resources may have future potential, as scientists predict that, due to consequences engendered by climate change, currently consumed crops will suffer or even fail due to a lack of water and/or extreme temperatures. Therefore, there is huge potential in domesticating and developing these lesser-known wild plants as the crops of the future. This Special Issue of Plants is inviting the submission of papers considering this important subject, giving special significance to fruit trees since a much longer period of time is needed to research perennial plants than annual plant crops. Papers dealing with all aspects of this topic are welcomed in this Special Issue.

Prof. Dr. Yosef Mizrahi
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

exotic fruit trees
new fruit crops
tolerant fruit trees
introduction fruit trees
research and development with fruit trees

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

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17 pages, 3083 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Domestication Potential of Garcinia kola Heckel (Clusiaceae): Searching for Diversity in South Cameroon

by Anna Maňourová, Irikidzai Prosper Chinheya, Marie Kalousová, José Alejandro Ruiz-Chután, Uche Cyprian Okafor, Zac Tchoundjeu, Alain Tsobeng, Patrick Van Damme and Bohdan Lojka

Plants 2023, 12(4), 742; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants12040742 - 07 Feb 2023

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2185 | Correction

Abstract

Seeds and bark of Garcinia kola Heckel (Clusiaceae) are popular products in West and Central Africa. Despite the tree’s economic and cultural importance, little is known about its phenotypic and genotypic variation. This study characterised the morphological and genetic diversity of G. kola in South Cameroon, searching for traits and populations that might be used for domestication. Morphological assessment and amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) markers were applied to characterise diversity among geographic populations from Central and South regions, and between managed and wild trees. AFLP-SURV and analysis of molecular variance results indicated that a major part of genetic diversity is harboured within populations rather than between them. Bayesian analysis, principal component analysis and t-SNE identified three clusters where Ebolowa emerged as the transition population combining features from both regions. Trees from the South demonstrated a higher incidence of domestication-related traits, showing higher genetic diversity compared to the Central region. This suggests that individuals from the South might be more suitable for selection as “elite trees” in future breeding strategies for the species. No significant differences in phenotype and genotype were revealed between wild and managed populations, suggesting G. kola is still in the early stages of its domestication process. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Domestication of Fruit Trees)

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22 pages, 5073 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Hidden Tenants: Microbiota of the Rhizosphere and Phyllosphere of Cordia dodecandra Trees in Mayan Forests and Homegardens

by Carla G. May-Mutul, Miguel A. López-Garrido, Aileen O’Connor-Sánchez, Yuri J. Peña-Ramírez, Natalia Y. Labrín-Sotomayor, Héctor Estrada-Medina and Miriam M. Ferrer

Plants 2022, 11(22), 3098; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants11223098 - 15 Nov 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1827

Abstract

During domestication, the selection of cultivated plants often reduces microbiota diversity compared with their wild ancestors. Microbiota in compartments such as the phyllosphere or rhizosphere can promote fruit tree health, growth, and development. Cordia dodecandra is a deciduous tree used by Maya people for its fruit and wood, growing, to date, in remnant forest fragments and homegardens (traditional agroforestry systems) in Yucatán. In this work, we evaluated the microbiota’s alpha and beta diversity per compartment (phyllosphere and rhizosphere) and per population (forest and homegarden) in the Northeast and Southwest Yucatán regions. Eight composite DNA samples (per compartment/population/region combination) were amplified for 16S-RNA (bacteria) and ITS1-2 (fungi) and sequenced by Illumina MiSeq. Bioinformatic analyses were performed with QIIME and phyloseq. For bacteria and fungi, from 107,947 and 128,786 assembled sequences, 618 and 1092 operating taxonomic units (OTUs) were assigned, respectively. The alpha diversity of bacteria and fungi was highly variable among samples and was similar among compartments and populations. A significant species turnover among populations and regions was observed in the rhizosphere. The core microbiota from the phyllosphere was similar among populations and regions. Forests and homegarden populations are reservoirs of the C. dodecandra phyllosphere core microbiome and significant rhizosphere biodiversity. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Domestication of Fruit Trees)

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15 pages, 2807 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Pollen-Pistil Interaction in Response to Pollination Variants in Subtropical Japanese Plum (Prunus salicina Lindl.) Varieties

by Ankit Dongariyal, Dinesh Chandra Dimri, Pradeep Kumar, Ashok Choudhary, Priynka Kumari Jat, Boris Basile, Alessandro Mataffo, Giandomenico Corrado and Akath Singh

Plants 2022, 11(22), 3081; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants11223081 - 14 Nov 2022

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1369

Abstract

The Japanese plum (Prunus salicina Lindl.) is a fruit tree globally cultivated in temperate regions of the world. Its floral biology and yield are affected by several factors, with issues related to self- and cross- (in) compatibility among varieties being emblematic of the whole Rosaceae family. The aim of this work was to elucidate the fruit set, dynamics of pollen tube growth in pistil, and yield and other fruiting attributes, in ‘Satluj Purple’ and ‘Kala Amritsari’, probably the most popular subtropical Japanese plum varieties in northern regions of India. Specifically, we examined the response of six different pollination variants, namely to self-pollination, open-pollination with the two cultivars located in adjacent rows, open-pollination with the two cultivars located in distant rows, manual cross-pollination, supplementary pollination, and floral bouquet. During the two years of the investigation, both plum cultivars showed good in vitro pollen germination (on average, above 50%) at different sucrose concentrations, with the highest values for the ‘Satluj Purple’ and for the 15% concentration. In vivo, the analysis of the pollen growth in the various sections of the style indicated the best performance when pistils of ‘Satluj Purple’ were pollinated by pollen grains of cv. ‘Kala Amritsari’. Cross-pollination also registered faster growth of pollen tube in pistil with the lowest number of incompatible pollen tubes compared to open- and self-pollination. From the productive point of view, cross-pollination showed the most pronounced results among the different pollination variants, with the highest initial fruit set (36.6%) and yield (28.0 kg/tree), and the shorter fruit development in ‘Satluj Purple’ (fruit set and yield in self-pollinated ‘Satluj Purple’ trees were 3.3% and 2.0 kg/tree, respectively). Conversely, the use of ‘Satluj Purple’ pollen for ‘Kala Amritsari’ showed poor results. Finally, in our study, ‘Kala Amritsari’ showed self-compatibility. We conclude that the main cause of poor fruit set in ‘Satluj Purple’ is self-incompatibility. The relevant genotypic-specific effects revealed by the analysis of the various pollination treatments also highlighted the importance of interplanting to increase fruit set and yield for subtropical Japanese plum varieties. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Domestication of Fruit Trees)

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Review

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17 pages, 1366 KiB

Open AccessReview

Exploring Dabai (Canarium odontophyllum), Indigenous Fruit of Borneo: A Review of Nutritional Values, Potential Uses, Emerging Application in Essential Oil Processing, and Health Benefits

by Muhammad Hazwan Hamzah, Mohd Salahuddin Mohd Basri, Bernard Maringgal, Maimunah Mohd Ali, Mohd Hafizz Wondi, Hasfalina Che Man and Sukardi Gatuk Abdulloh

Plants 2022, 11(19), 2646; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants11192646 - 08 Oct 2022

Viewed by 4422

Abstract

Dabai (Canarium odontophyllum) is a fruit-bearing plant native to Borneo. Its fruit is an indigenous seasonal fruit that is considered to be underutilized due to its short shelf life. However, new products have been developed to ensure a continuous supply of dabai fruit throughout the year. Hence, the exploration of dabai fruits in characterizations and utilization for food products and essential oil has expanded exponentially. This review addresses the nutritional values, health benefits, potential food products, and essential oil processing of dabai fruit. All parts of dabai fruit, such as the pulp, skin, and kernel, contain a considerable amount of bioactive compounds, dietary fiber, and nutrients. Moreover, dabai fruit has also been proven to have health benefits such as an antioxidant capacity, cholesterol reduction, diabetes type 2 prevention, and reduction in the risk of heart disease. Some potential dabai-based food products and oil processing of dabai are also highlighted. The future perspectives and challenges concerning the potential uses of dabai are critically addressed at the end of this review. Based on this review, it is proven that dabai has various health benefits and represents a potential breakthrough in the agricultural and food industries. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Domestication of Fruit Trees)

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