Dynamic of DNA cytosine methylation in the acclimatization of a single clone of Vitis vinifera cv Malbec to contrating growing environments over a three year study

VARELA A.; MARFIL C.; ASURMENDI S.; BERLI F.

Santa Fé

Congreso; XXXIII Reunión Argentina de Fisiología Vegetal (RAFV); 2021

Sociedad Argentina de Fisiología Vegetal (SAFV)

DNA cytosine methylation is the most studied epigenetic mechanism, but its role in the acclimatization of the grapevine to different growing environments is unclear. Especially, its stability or dynamics throughout the different growing seasons (inheritance). We previously found that vineyard environments influence Vitis vinifera cv Malbec phenotypic traits and DNA methylation patterns in a clone-dependent way. Also, that clone 10 (MB10) showed clear phenotypic differences between vineyards (Agrelo and Gualtallary in Mendoza, 955 and 1343 m a.s.l., respectively) in correlation with DNA methylation patterns. In the present experiment, MB10 cuttings from Agrelo and Gualtallary were planted into a common environment, the Lunlunta vineyard. Then, anonymous genome regions were analyzed using methylation-sensitive amplified polymorphism (MSAP) markers during 2016, 2017 and 2018 seasons in apical apex collected from five replicates from Lunlunta. We found that the different patterns of DNA methylation observed between the original vineyards are gradually decreasing each year in Lunlunta without loosing completely their differences. On the contrary, the level of DNA methylation remained the same through each year. Finally, we discuss how this epigenetic dynamic could be related with the high phenotypic plasticity observed in MB10 cuttings cultivated in Lunlunta.