Methods for conservation of intra-varietal genetic variability in ancient grapevine varieties

• Main Authors: Gonçalves E., Martins A.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: EDP Sciences 2019-01-01
• Series: BIO Web of Conferences
• Online Access: https://www.bio-conferences.org/articles/bioconf/full_html/2019/04/bioconf-oiv2019_01029/bioconf-oiv2019_01029.html

Conservation of intra-varietal genetic variability is a crucial strategy to preserve traditional viticulture and to face future challenges. Conservation can be performed through two processes: (1) conservation without other immediate objectives; (2) conservation which simultaneously ensures the evaluation of important quantitative traits (such as yield, must quality traits, tolerance to abiotic stresses). The second strategy permits the quantification of intra-varietal genetic variability for important quantitative traits and the selection of a superior group of genotypes (polyclonal selection). Based on the results obtained from the conservation of ancient Portuguese varieties, the abovementioned methods for conservation of intra-varietal diversity are compared, and the advantages and disadvantages of each one are discussed.