Browsing by Author "Morris, Wayne L."

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    A member of the TERMINAL FLOWER1/CENTRORADIALIS gene family controls sprout growth in potato tubers
    (Oxford University Press, 2018-11-03) Morris, Wayne L.; Alamar, M. Carmen; Lopez-Cobollo, Rosa M.; Castillo Cañete, Javier; Bennett, Mark; van der Kaay, Jeroen; Stevens, Jennifer; Sharma, Sanjeev Kumar; McLean, Karen; Thompson, Andrew J.; Terry, Leon A.; Turnbull, Colin G. N.; Bryan, Glenn J.; Taylor, Mark A.
    Potato tuber bud dormancy break followed by premature sprouting is a major commercial problem which results in quality losses and decreased tuber marketability. An approach to controlling premature tuber sprouting is to develop potato cultivars with a longer dormancy period and/or reduced rate of sprout growth. Our recent studies using a potato diploid population have identified several quantitative trait loci (QTLs) that are associated with tuber sprout growth. In the current study, we aim to characterize a candidate gene associated with one of the largest effect QTLs for rapid tuber sprout growth on potato chromosome 3. Underlying this QTL is a gene encoding a TERMINAL FLOWER 1/CENTRORADIALIS homologue (PGSC0003DMG400014322). Here, we use a transgenic approach to manipulate the expression level of the CEN family member in a potato tetraploid genotype (cv. Désirée). We demonstrate a clear effect of manipulation of StCEN expression, with decreased expression levels associated with an increased rate of sprout growth, and overexpressing lines showing a lower rate of sprout growth than controls. Associated with different levels of StCEN expression were different levels of abscisic acid and cytokinins, implying a role in controlling the levels of plant growth regulators in the apical meristem.