Chromosome-scale reference genome assembly of a diploid potato clone derived from an elite variety.

Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) is one of the most important crops with a worldwide production of 370 million metric tons. The objectives of this study were (1) to create a high-quality consensus sequence across the two haplotypes of a diploid clone derived from a tetraploid elite variety and assess the sequence divergence from the available potato genome assemblies, as well as among the two haplotypes; (2) to evaluate the new assembly's usefulness for various genomic methods; and (3) to assess the performance of phasing in diploid and tetraploid clones, using linked-read sequencing technology.

Fast, Precise, and Reliable Multiplex Detection of Potato Viruses by Loop-Mediated Isothermal Amplification.

Potato is an important staple food crop in both developed and developing countries. However, potato plants are susceptible to several economically important viruses that reduce yields by up to 50% and affect tuber quality. One of the major threats is corky ringspot, which is a tuber necrosis caused by tobacco rattle virus (TRV).

Precision breeding for novel starch variants in potato.

Potato can be used as a source of modified starches for culinary and industrial processes, but its allelic diversity and tetraploid genome make the identification of novel alleles a challenge, and breeding such alleles into elite lines is a slow and difficult process. An efficient and reliable strategy has been developed for the rapid introduction and identification of new alleles in elite potato breeding lines, based on the ethylmethanesulphonate mutagenesis of dihaploid seeds. Using the granule-bound starch synthase I gene (waxy) as a model, a series of point mutations that potentially affect gene expression or enzyme function was identified.

The K+ channel SKT1 is co-expressed with KST1 in potato guard cells--both channels can co-assemble via their conserved KT domains.

An appreciable number of potassium channels mediating K+ uptake have been identified in higher plants. Promoter-beta-glucuronidase reporter gene studies were used here to demonstrate that SKT1, encoding a potato K+ inwardly rectifying channel, is expressed in guard cells in addition to KST1 previously reported. However, whereas KST1 was found to be expressed in essentially all mature guard cells, SKT1 expression was almost exclusively restricted to guard cells of the abaxial leaf epidermis.