conference schedule and program with abstracts - Horticulture ...

P-11
Drawing links from transcriptome to metabolites: the evolution of Muscat aroma in the
ripening berry
L. Costantini* 1 , J. Battilana 1 , C. Kappel 2 , F. Emanuelli 1 , M. Sordo 1 , S. Delrot 2 , M.S. Grando 1
1
IASMA Research Centre, Fondazione Edmund Mach, San Michele all’Adige, Trento, Italy;
2 UMR Ecophysiology and Grape Functional Genomics, University of Bordeaux, INRA, Institut
des Sciences de la Vigne et du Vin, Villenave d’Ornon, France
*Corresponding author : laura.costantini@iasma.it
Owing to the role that aroma plays in the perceived quality of grapes and wines, there is a
tremendous interest in understanding how the accumulation of sensory compounds is regulated at
the molecular level. To this purpose, we applied an integrative functional genomics approach by
simultaneously monitoring the abundance of transcripts and metabolites in ripening berries of
Moscato Bianco (Vitis vinifera L.).Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis of thirty-two
out of the most important ‘impact’ compounds (monoterpenoids, C 13 -norisoprenoids, benzenoids
and C 6 -aliphatic compounds) in their free and bound forms was combined with a large-scale
transcriptome analysis based on the use of the AROS 1.0 oligonucleotide microarray (14,562
probes) at five developmental stages from pre-véraison to over-ripening. Several exploratory
methods were tested for the integration of transcript and metabolite profiles with the final goal to
identify genes or groups of genes which are linked with the accumulation of specific metabolites
or groups of metabolites. Pair-wise metabolite-to-metabolite and gene-to-metabolite correlations
were calculated. Various types of clustering were performed by incorporating both differentially
expressed genes and metabolites. Gene network analysis was assayed in order to identify items
with similar patterns of co-regulation. Finally, modulated transcripts were checked for their
potential co-localization with previously identified QTLs controlling the level of aromatic
compounds. This work is expected to provide insight into the regulatory network of grapevine
secondary metabolism and is aimed at identifying genes relevant to aroma determination both at
the regulatory and catalytic levels.
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