Biodiversity Evaluation and Preservation of Italian Stone Fruit Germplasm (Peach and Apricot) in Southern Italy.

ABSTRACT: The Prunus genus encompasses a group of economically important and closely related crops, sharing an essentially common genome and, thereby, a high level of conserved and transferable microsatellite (SSR) loci. In Southern Italy, many of the local and/or neglected varieties are abandoned and at risk of extinction due to the high degree of urbanization and agricultural intensification, despite their value as genetic resources for crop improvement. This research aimed to genetically and morphologically characterize the traditional apricot (P. armenica) and peach (P. persica) germplasms collected in old family orchards. Most of the official descriptor categories were scored, thus revealing a rather high level of phenotypic variation in both collections. Genetic data allow

SUBMITTER: Savoia MA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10055517 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature