Systems approach for exploring the intricate associations between sweetness, color and aroma in melon fruits

• DOI: 10.1186/s12870-015-0449-x
• Publication Date: 2015-03-02T19:16:05Z
• Authors: Shiri Freilich; Shery Lev; Itay Gonda; Eli Reuveni; Vitaly Portnoy; Elad Oren; Marc Lohse; Navot Galpaz; Einat Bar; Galil Tzuri; Guy Wissotsky; Ayala Meir; Joseph Burger; Yaakov Tadmor; Arthur Schaffer; Zhangjun Fei; James Giovannoni; Efraim Lewinsohn; Nurit Katzir
• Keywords: Sweetness; Melon

Melon (Cucumis melo) fruits exhibit phenotypic diversity in several key quality determinants such as taste, color and aroma. Sucrose, carotenoids volatiles are recognized the compounds shaping above corresponding traits yet full network of biochemical events underlying their synthesis have not been comprehensively described. To delineate cellular processes fruit phenotypes, a population recombinant inbred lines (RIL) was used source genotypic variations. In parallel, ripe were analyzed for both quantified level 77 metabolic directly associated with RNA-seq based expression profiles generated 27,000 unigenes. First, we explored inter-metabolite association patterns; then, described metabolites versus gene finally, correlation-based associations predicting uncharacterized pathways.Based on metabolite patterns, divided into two groups: group including ethylene aroma determining whose accumulation patterns correlated genes involved glycolysis TCA cycle pathways; sucrose levels plastid formation.The study integrates multiple genome scale perspective activity. This lays foundation deciphering role markers determination traits.