Trends in Genetics
ReviewHistorical origins and genetic diversity of wine grapes
Section snippets
The current status of grape genomic resources
The grapevine (Vitis vinifera L.) is attractive for genomic research because it is diploid and has a small genome size of 475–500 Mb relative to other plants (it is approximately four times the size of Arabidopsis and one sixth the size of the corn genome) 1, 2, consisting of 19 chromosomes. The genotypes of grape varieties are highly heterozygous and nearly all modern cultivated varieties (cultivars) are hermaphroditic, self-fertile and out-cross easily. Over the past five years there has been
Historical overview
The grape is unique: not only is it a major global horticulture crop but it also has ancient historical connections with the development of human culture. The main product, wine, was considered divine, a drink of the gods: even Dionysus and Bacchus were dedicated to this beverage. Other Mediterranean cultures considered that ‘the wine sprang from the blood of humans who had fought the gods’ [3] and wine has always had a major role in the way of life of Mediterranean people [4].
In the Vitaceae
From the wild grapevine to varieties
How did V. vinifera evolve from the wild to the cultivated form? As already demonstrated for many other plant species 20, 21, molecular, genetic and genomic studies can help answer many questions about grape evolution and diversity. A better understanding of the exact status of the remaining wild grape populations and their relationships with existing varieties is important if we are to answer this question.
V. vinifera germplasm and genetic diversity
Molecular evidence shows that both sexual and asexual multiplication and mutations have had a major role in the expansion and diversification of grapevine. The number of different varieties held in germplasm collections around the world is estimated at ∼10 000 [7]. Nearly every wine-growing country has its own grapevine germplasm collection, owing to quarantine restrictions and the need to maintain the material in the field as living plants. As already mentioned for Mission cultivar, many names
Concluding remarks
Further research is required to determine accurately the extent and origin of existing genetic diversity, which is mostly confined to germplasm collections. A real possibility exists that some of these germplasm collections will be reduced in size, owing to dwindling resources, and many unique genotypes might be lost. Extensive DNA profiling of the grape varieties found in collections and the development of a common database would seem to be a priority to determine the true number of varieties
Acknowledgements
This work was supported in part by CSIRO Plant Industry, the Commonwealth Cooperative Research Centre Program, specifically the Cooperative Research Centre for Viticulture (CRCV) and the Grape and Wine Research and Development Cooperation (GWRDC), INRA and the French Ministry of Research and Agriculture. We thank J.P. Bruno for assistance with Figure 2.
Glossary
- Ampelography
- the scientific study of grapevine identification and classification using visual descriptors, for example, leaf shape and berry characters.
- Cultivar
- a cultivated variety.
- Dioecious
- male and female reproductive structures are on different individual plants.
- Hermaphrodite
- male and female reproductive structures are on the same plant; they are in the same flower in grapevine, enabling self fertilization.
- Landrace
- old cultivar of local importance.
References (65)
Genetic clues to the origin of the apple
Trends Genet.
(2002)Oranges and lemons: clues to the taxonomy of citrus from molecular markers
Trends Genet.
(2001)Microsatellites from archaeological Vitis vinifera seeds allow a tentative assignment of the geographical origin of ancient cultivars
J. Archaeo. Sci.
(2003)Repetitive DNA of grapevine: classes present and sequences suitable for cultivar identification
Theor. Appl. Genet.
(1993)- et al.
In situ hybridization in Vitis vinifera L
Theor. Appl. Genet.
(1995) Ancient wine: the search for the origins of viniculture
(2004)- Blanco, J.L. (1997) La plus vieille histoire du vin. In L’Histoire du vin, une histoire de rites (Office International...
Le monde des plantes avant l’apparition de l’homme
(1879)Domestication of the Grapevine Vitis vinifera L. in the Near East
- et al.
The Genetic Resources of Vitis: World List of Grapevine Collections
(1994)
Dictionnaire Encyclopédique des Cépages
Les populations sauvages et cultivées de Vitis vinifera L
Ann. Amélior. Plantes
Situation de la vigne sauvage Vitis vinifera subsp. silvestris en Europe
Vitis
Quantitative anatomical criteria for discriminating wild grapevine (Vitis vinifera ssp. sylvestris) from cultivated vines (Vitis vinifera ssp. vinifera)
British Archaeological Reports, International Series
Grapes
Neolithic resinated wine
Nature
Essai sur les variétés de la vigne qui végètent en Andalousie
Cépages et Vignobles de France
Caractérisation de la diversité d’une population de vignes sauvages du Pic Saint-Loup (Hérault) et relations avec le compartiment cultivé
Genet. Selec. Evol.
Presencia de Vitis vinifera silvestris en la serrania de Grazalemam: algunas consideraciones fitosanitarias
VitiVinicultura
RAPD markers in wild and cultivated Vitis vinifera
Vitis
Evidence of a secondary grapevine domestication centre detected by SSR analysis
Theor. Appl. Genet.
Relationship and genetic diversity of wild and cultivated grapevines (Vitis vinifera L.) in central Europe based on microsatellite markers
Acta Hortic
Genetic relationship among cultivated and wild grapevine accessions from Tunisia
Genome
Genetic structure and differentiation in cultivated grape, Vitis vinifera L
Genet. Res.
Cited by (624)
Integration of machine learning models with microsatellite markers: New avenue in world grapevine germplasm characterization
2024, Biochemistry and Biophysics ReportsGrapevine origin and diversity
2024, Advances in Botanical ResearchUnraveling the diversity and cultural heritage of fruit crops through paleogenomics
2024, Trends in GeneticsThe Holocene history of grapevine (Vitis vinifera) and viticulture in France retraced from a large-scale archaeobotanical dataset
2023, Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, PalaeoecologyVine Variety identification through Leaf Image classification: a large-scale study on the robustness of five deep learning models
2024, Journal of Agricultural ScienceA Field Survey of Grapevine Germplasm Susceptible to Eutypa Dieback
2024, HortScience