High Lycopene Tomato Breeding via Marker-Assisted Selection
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current tomato cultivars have low lycopene content, which is a limitation for enhancing fruit quality and health benefits, as high lycopene content is desirable for its antioxidant properties and cancer prevention, but previous attempts to increase lycopene through genes like hp1 and hp2 are hindered by adverse pleiotropic effects such as slow germination and reduced yield.
Innovation Solution
Development of new inbred tomato lines and hybrids with high lycopene content using genetic markers and QTLs identified on chromosomes 7 and 12, allowing for marker-assisted selection and breeding to incorporate high lycopene traits without the negative effects of previous genes, such as LA2093 accession from Solanum pimpinellifolium, which has exceptionally high lycopene concentration.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If genes like hp1 and hp2 are used to increase lycopene content, then lycopene content is improved, but germination speed and yield deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts only the beneficial lycopene-enhancing function from the hp1 and hp2 genes while leaving behind the harmful pleiotropic effects. This is achieved through molecular breeding techniques that isolate and transfer specific genomic regions responsible for lycopene accumulation without transferring the linked genes that cause slow germination and reduced yield.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention applies local quality by modifying only the specific genomic regions associated with lycopene content while preserving the rest of the genome. Through marker-assisted selection and molecular breeding, the patent targets and enhances lycopene accumulation in specific chromosomal locations without altering other traits, thereby achieving localized improvement without global negative effects.
2Quantity of substance
If traditional breeding methods are used to increase lycopene content, then lycopene content is improved, but adverse pleiotropic effects are introduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses molecular markers as intermediaries to mediate the selection process. These markers serve as proxies that allow breeders to select for high lycopene content without directly selecting for the harmful pleiotropic effects. The markers are linked to the desired lycopene-enhancing alleles but can be used to track and select only the beneficial effects while avoiding the harmful ones.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention replaces traditional mechanical phenotypic selection with molecular breeding techniques. Instead of visually selecting plants based on fruit color and then hoping for high lycopene content, the patent uses DNA-based markers to directly identify and select plants with the desired lycopene-enhancing genotypes, thereby eliminating the need to accept adverse pleiotropic effects that would manifest in traditional breeding.
3Quantity of substance
If spontaneous mutations are used to increase lycopene content, then lycopene content is improved, but germination and seedling growth are hindered
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the beneficial lycopene-enhancing mutation from the spontaneous mutants while removing the linked genes that cause germination and seedling growth problems. Through molecular mapping and marker-assisted selection, the invention isolates the specific genomic regions responsible for high lycopene content and transfers them without the harmful genetic linkages.
Data Source
AI summary
Solanum pimpinellifolium plants which are exceptionally high in fruit lycopene content (˜300-390 μg lycopene/g fresh fruit) are disclosed herein, which may be used in plant breeding to make the tomato plants of the present invention. The invention also discloses genetic markers, which are associated with the trait which may be used in marker-assisted selection for development of plants, lines, or varieties with the trait.