The Transcriptional Landscape of Berry Skin in Red and White PIWI (“Pilzwiderstandsfähig”) Grapevines Possessing QTLs for Partial Resistance to Downy and Powdery Mildews
Francesco Scariolo,
Giovanni Gabelli,
Gabriele Magon,
Fabio Palumbo,
Carlotta Pirrello,
Silvia Farinati,
Andrea Curioni,
Aurélien Devillars,
Margherita Lucchin,
Gianni Barcaccia,
Alessandro Vannozzi
Affiliations
Francesco Scariolo
Department of Agronomy, Food, Natural Resources, Animals and Environment (DAFNAE), University of Padova, Agripolis, 35020 Legnaro, Italy
Giovanni Gabelli
Department of Agronomy, Food, Natural Resources, Animals and Environment (DAFNAE), University of Padova, Agripolis, 35020 Legnaro, Italy
Gabriele Magon
Department of Agronomy, Food, Natural Resources, Animals and Environment (DAFNAE), University of Padova, Agripolis, 35020 Legnaro, Italy
Fabio Palumbo
Department of Agronomy, Food, Natural Resources, Animals and Environment (DAFNAE), University of Padova, Agripolis, 35020 Legnaro, Italy
Carlotta Pirrello
Research and Innovation Centre, Fondazione Edmund Mach, Via E. Mach 1, 38098 San Michele all’Adige, Italy
Silvia Farinati
Department of Agronomy, Food, Natural Resources, Animals and Environment (DAFNAE), University of Padova, Agripolis, 35020 Legnaro, Italy
Andrea Curioni
Department of Agronomy, Food, Natural Resources, Animals and Environment (DAFNAE), University of Padova, Agripolis, 35020 Legnaro, Italy
Aurélien Devillars
Department of Agronomy, Food, Natural Resources, Animals and Environment (DAFNAE), University of Padova, Agripolis, 35020 Legnaro, Italy
Margherita Lucchin
Department of Agronomy, Food, Natural Resources, Animals and Environment (DAFNAE), University of Padova, Agripolis, 35020 Legnaro, Italy
Gianni Barcaccia
Department of Agronomy, Food, Natural Resources, Animals and Environment (DAFNAE), University of Padova, Agripolis, 35020 Legnaro, Italy
Alessandro Vannozzi
Department of Agronomy, Food, Natural Resources, Animals and Environment (DAFNAE), University of Padova, Agripolis, 35020 Legnaro, Italy
PIWI, from the German word Pilzwiderstandsfähig, meaning “fungus-resistant”, refers to grapevine cultivars bred for resistance to fungal pathogens such as Erysiphe necator (the causal agent of powdery mildew) and Plasmopara viticola (the causal agent of downy mildew), two major diseases in viticulture. These varieties are typically developed through traditional breeding, often crossbreeding European Vitis vinifera with American or Asian species that carry natural disease resistance. This study investigates the transcriptional profiles of exocarp tissues in mature berries from four PIWI grapevine varieties compared to their elite parental counterparts using RNA-seq analysis. We performed RNA-seq on four PIWI varieties (two red and two white) and their noble parents to identify differential gene expression patterns. Comprehensive analyses, including Differential Gene Expression (DEGs), Gene Set Enrichment Analysis (GSEA), Weighted Gene Co-expression Network Analysis (WGCNA), and tau analysis, revealed distinct gene clusters and individual genes characterizing the transcriptional landscape of PIWI varieties. Differentially expressed genes indicated significant changes in pathways related to organic acid metabolism and membrane transport, potentially contributing to enhanced resilience. WGCNA and k-means clustering highlighted co-expression modules linked to PIWI genotypes and their unique tolerance profiles. Tau analysis identified genes uniquely expressed in specific genotypes, with several already known for their defense roles. These findings offer insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying grapevine resistance and suggest promising avenues for breeding strategies to enhance disease resistance and overall grape quality in viticulture.
