Biology subjects

Kwasniewski, M. T.

Publications and source records attributed to Kwasniewski, M. T..

3 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2023

Grapevine scion gene expression is driven by rootstock and environment interaction

BACKGROUNDGrafting is a horticultural practice used widely across woody perennial crop species to fuse together the root and shoot system of two distinct genotypes, the rootstock and the scion, combining beneficial traits from both. In grapevine, grafting is used in nearly 80% of all commercial vines to optimize fruit quality, regulate vine vigor, and enhance biotic and abiotic stress-tolerance. Rootstocks have been shown to modulate elemental composition, metabolomic profiles, and the shape of leaves in the scion, among other traits. However, it is currently unclear how rootstock genotypes influence shoot system gene expression as previous work has reported complex and often contradictory findings. RESULTSIn the present study, we examine the influence of grafting on scion gene expression in leaves and reproductive tissues of grapevines growing under field conditions for three years. We show that the influence from the rootstock genotype is highly tissue and time dependent, manifesting only in leaves, primarily during a single year of our three-year study. Further, the degree of rootstock influence on scion gene expression is driven by interactions with the local environment. CONCLUSIONSOur results demonstrate that the role of rootstock genotype in modulating scion gene expression is not a consistent, unchanging effect, but rather an effect that varies over time in relation to local environmental conditions.

plant biology↗

bioRxiv2022

X-ray imaging of 30 year old wine grape wood reveals cumulative impacts of rootstocks on scion secondary growth and harvest index

O_LIAnnual rings from 30 year old vines in a California rootstock trial were measured to determine the effects of 15 different rootstocks on Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon scions. Viticultural traits measuring vegetative growth, yield, berry quality, and nutrient uptake were collected at the beginning and end of the lifetime of the vineyard. C_LIO_LIX-ray Computed Tomography (CT) was used to measure ring widths in 103 vines. Ring width was modeled as a function of ring number using a negative exponential model. Early and late wood ring widths, cambium width, and scion trunk radius were correlated with 27 traits. C_LIO_LIModeling of annual ring width shows that scions alter the width of the first rings but that rootstocks alter the decay thereafter, consistently shortening ring width throughout the lifetime of the vine. The ratio of yield to vegetative growth, juice pH, photosynthetic assimilation and transpiration rates, and stomatal conductance are correlated with scion trunk radius. C_LIO_LIRootstocks modulate secondary growth over years, altering hydraulic conductance, physiology, and agronomic traits. Rootstocks act in similar but distinct ways from climate to modulate ring width, which borrowing techniques from dendrochronology, can be used to monitor both genetic and environmental effects in woody perennial crop species. C_LI

plant biology↗

bioRxiv2020

Epigenomic patterns reflect irrigation and grafting in the grapevine clone 'Chambourcin'

Although DNA methylation has largely been shown to be stable in plants, mounting evidence indicates methylation patterns may reflect environmental sensitivity. Perennial plants experience seasonal and inter-annual environmental variation, and clonal replicates of some long-lived plants, including many perennial crops, survive in a broad range of environments. This makes perennial crops a compelling study system to investigate links between the plant epigenome and environmental variation. In this study, we used whole genome bisulfite sequencing and small RNA sequencing to characterize the epigenome in 12 clonal replicates of the winegrape cultivar Chambourcin. We asked whether DNA methylation varied in response to a full factorial combination of irrigation and grafting treatments. We found signatures of both irrigation and grafting in the Chambourcin epigenome, as well as compelling evidence for a unique interaction effect whereby grafting appeared to override or mitigate epigenomic changes associated with irrigation in ungrafted vines. These findings indicate that the epigenome responds to environmental and agronomic manipulations, suggesting the epigenome might be a mechanism underlying how long-lived, clonal plants respond at the molecular level to their environment. Further research is needed to assess the potential relevance of variation in DNA methylation to plant form and function, and to address the implications of environmentally-inducible patterns of DNA methylation on the adaptive capacity of long-lived woody perennials in nature and under cultivation.

genomics↗