Location: Vegetable Research
Project Number: 6080-21000-019-004-S
Project Type: Non-Assistance Cooperative Agreement
Start Date: Sep 1, 2014
End Date: Aug 30, 2019
Objective:
Our objectives are to identify and map gene loci conferring resistance to major diseases of watermelon, including Fusarium wilt and papaya ring-spot virus (PRSV) and incorporate these gene loci (alleles) into the genomic background of watermelon cultivars. Our objective in this project is to sequence and re-sequence the genomes of watermelon accessions collected in the wild in Africa and Asia and which have resistance to Fusarium wilt or PRSV and utilize the genomic data to identify the putative genes conferring resistance.
Approach:
We have isolated DNA from the desert watermelon Citrullus colocynthis PI 537277 resistant to PRSV, and from eight Citrullus lanatus parental lines, resistant or susceptible to Fusarium wilt. These lines will be sequenced using the Illumina sequencing technology at University of Illinois, Biotechnology Center. The full sequencing data for PI 537277 will be used for De novo assembly of the desert watermelon genome. The sequencing data of the Citrullus lanatus parental lines will be used for analysis and identification of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) tightly linked to gene loci conferring resistance.
