Genetics and genomics of carrot anthocyanin pigmentation

CAVAGNARO, P. F.

Varsovia

Conferencia; International Conference on Plant Genetic Applications; 2021

Purple carrots accumulate anthocyanins in their tap root, leaves and inflorescences.The concentration and composition of these flavonoid pigments in differentorgans and tissues of the carrot plant is genetically conditioned and environmentallyinfluenced. Some genetic stocks exhibit very high concentrations of anthocyaninsin their roots, representing an excellent dietary source of antioxidant and anti-inflammatorycompounds. In addition to their health attributes, carrot anthocyaninsare used as natural colorants in the food industry. The composition of thesepigments, mainly with regard to their relative content of acylated anthocyanins(AA) and non-acylated anthocyanins (NAA), strongly influences their bioavailabilityand chemical stability, therefore conditioning their potential use as dietary nutraceuticalsor food dyes. Thus, from a breeding perspective aiming at developingvarieties for both end-purposes, it is important to understand the genetic basis underlyinganthocyanin biosynthesis and chemical modification. In recent years,several genetic and genomic studies have shed light on this. Simply-inherited traitsand QTL conditioning root anthocyanin concentration and acylation were geneticallymapped at high resolution, leading to the discovery of candidate genes affectingboth the biosynthesis and acylation of these pigments, in different geneticbackgrounds. Genomic and transcriptomic data from purple and non-purple carrotshave been useful for inferring interactions among the genes involved in thispathway. It is expected that these data will impact favorably purple carrot breedingprograms and thereby the food colorant industry.