Cucurbit Genetics Cooperative Report 15:102-109 (article 38) 1992
Mark G. Hutton and R.W. Robinson
PetoSeed, RR2, Box 80-A Slade Lane, Bridgeton, NJ 08302 and Department of Horticultural Science, New York State Agricultural Experiment Station, Cornell University, Geneva,NY 14456
Concern has been expressed (26) about the use of the “+” symbol for the normal allele of cucurbit genes. The truly wild types does not exist for most cultivated cucurbits as it does for Drosophila. A wild or feral taxon closely related to Cucurbita pepo, such as C. texana or C. fraterna, would be inappropriate as a progenitor or wild type species for C. maxima, C. moschata, or other Cucurbita species. The cucurbit gene rules are based (31) on those for the tomato, which also lacks a wild type to typify the normal alleles for each gene. Tomato geneticists have selected the cultivar ‘Marglobe’ to represent the normal type, but the diversity of cucurbit cultivars precludes selecting only one type to represent the normal. No one cultivar for example is representative of summer squash, winter squash, pumpkins, ‘vegetable spaghetti’ and gourds of C. pepo. Instead of selecting one cultivar to represent the normal or “+” allele for each gene, it is left to the common sense of the researcher to distinguish between the normal and mutant alleles of a gene he or she names, and to choose a gene symbol corresponding with the name for the mutant allele. The “+” allele need not necessarily signify the phenotype of a putative wild ancestor, but preferably it should be that of a majority of the cultivars. Although the use of “+” is recommended, the use of upper and lower case for the first letter of symbols for dominant and recessive alleles at the same locus is acceptable.
Updated gene lists have recently been published for cucumber (29), melon (CGC 13:58-68, 1990), and watermelon (CGC 14:129-138, 1991). Lists for known genes for Cucurbita were published previously (4, 5, 6, 31). In the interest of updating and collecting information on the genetics of Cucurbita in one place, the following is a complete list of known genes. In bold characters are the genes which are maintained by the curators or which are very common in cultivars or collections. In light type are those genes which have been lost or are not yet in the curator’s collection. We hope to continue this practice and publish a complete list for the Cucurbita spp. every four years. Researchers are encouraged to send stocks for genes not listed in bold characters, new genes, and article reprints containing descriptions to the gene curators.
Please inform the Cucurbita gene curators (R.W. Robinson or Mark Hutton) of any omissions or errors in the following list of Cucurbita genes.
Gene symbol |
Character |
Species |
Reference |
|
Preferred Synonym |
||||
a | androecious. Produces only male flowers | 21 | ||
Aact-mb | Aspartate aminotransferase-microbody isozyme | maxima x eucadorensis | 51 | |
Aat-m | Aat-m1 | Aspartate aminotransfeerase mitochondria isozyme-1 | maxima x eucadorensis | 51 |
Aat-m2 | Aspartate aminotransferase mitochondria isozyme-2 | maxima x eucadorensis | 51 | |
Aat-p2 | Aspartate aminotransferase plastid isozyme-2 | maxima x eucadorensis | 51 | |
Acp | Acp-1 | Acid phosphatase – isozyme-1 | maxima x eucadorensis | 51 |
Acp-2 | Acid phosphatase – isozyme-2 | maxima x ecudorensis | 51 | |
Aldo-p | Aldolase – plastid isozyme | maxima x ecudorensis | 50 | |
B1 | Bicolor-1. Precocious yellow fruit pigmentation; modified by Ep-1, Ep-2 and Ses-B | pepo | 41, 42 | |
B2 | Bicolor-2 (precocious yellow fruit) | maxima | 44 | |
Bi | Bitter fruit. High cucurbitacin content in fruit | pepo | 2, 16, 52 | |
bl | blue fruit color. Incompletely recessive to green | maxima | 18 | |
Bu | Bush habit. Short internodes; dominant to vine habit in young plant stage but recessive at maturity | pepo, maxima | 8, 40, 47 | |
cr | cream corolla. Cream to nearly white petals for cr/er, yellow for crl /+, and orange for +/+; derived from C. okeechobeensis | moschata | 34 | |
cu | cucurbitacin content. Reduced cucurbitacin content | pepo | 39 | |
D | Dark green stem. Dominant to light green stem | pepo | 15 | |
Di | Disc fruit shape. Dominant to spherical | pepo | 46 | |
Ep-1 | Extender of pigmentation-1; modifier of B1 | pepo | 46 | |
Ep-2 | Extender of pigmentation-2;; modifier of B1 | pepo | 45 | |
Est | Esterase isozyme | maxima x ecudorensis | 49 | |
Fr | Fruit fly (Dacus cucurbitae) resistance | Maxima | 25 | |
G | a,m | Gynoecious sex expression | foetidissima | 9, 14 |
Gal | Gal-1 | β -galactosidase isozzyme-1 | maxima x ecuadorensis | 51 |
Gal-2 | β -galactosidase isozyme-2 | maxima x ecudorensis | 51 | |
Gb | Green band on inner side of base of petal; dominant to no band | pepo | 10 | |
gc | green corolla, Green, leaf-like petals | pepo | 48 | |
Got | Got-1 | Glutamine-oxaloacetate isozyme-1 | maxima x ecuadorensis | 51 |
Got-2 | Glutamine-oxaloacetate isozyme-2 | maxima x ecuadorensis | 51 | |
Gpi-c | Gpi-c1 | Glucosephosphate isomerase cytosolic isozyme-1 | maxima x ecuadorensis | 51 |
Gpi-c2 | Glucosephosphate isomerase cytosolic isozyme-2 | maxima x ecudorensis | 51 | |
Gr | G | Green rind. Dominant to buff skin of mature fruit | moschata | 32 |
Hi | Hard rind inhibitor | maxima | 17 | |
Hr | Hard rind | pepo | 23 | |
i | intensifier of the cr gene for cream flowers | okeechobeensis | 34 | |
I-T | Inhibitor of the T gene for trifluralin resistance | moschata | 1 | |
Idh | Idh-1 | Isocitrate dehydrogenase isozyme-1 | pepo | 7, 20 |
Idh-2 | Isocitrate dehydrogenase isozyme-2 | pepo | 7, 20 | |
Idh-3 | Isocitrate dehydrogenase isozyme-3 | pepo | 7, 20 | |
l | c | light fruit color. Uniform light intensity of fruit pigmentation; modified by St | pepo | 15, 27, 41 |
l-2 | light pigmentation of fruit-2 | pepo | 27 | |
Lap | Leucine aminopeptidase isozyme | maxima x ecuadorensis | 49 | |
lo | l | lobed leaves; recessive | maxima | 11 |
Lo-2 | lobed leaves-2; dominant | equadorensis | 17 | |
lt | leafy tendril. Tendrils with laminae | pepo | 36 | |
ly | light yellow corolla. Recessive orange yellow | pepo | 36 | |
M | Mottled leaves. Silver gray areas in axils of leaf veins | pepo, maxima, moschata | 3, 35, 38 | |
Mdh-m | Mdh-m1 | Malate dehydrogenase mitochondria isozyme-1 | maxima x ecuadorensis | 51 |
Mdh-m2 | Malate dehydrogenase mitochondria isozyme-2 | maxima x ecuadorensis | 51 | |
Mdh-c2 | Malate dehydrogenase cytosolic isozyme-2 | maxima x ecuadorensis | 51 | |
ms-1 | ms1 | male sterile-1. Male flowers abort before anthesis | pepo | 13 |
ms-2 | ms2 | male sterile-2. Male flowers abort | pepo | 13 |
n | naked seeds. Lacking a lignified seed coat | pepo | 16, 37 | |
Per | Per-1 | Peroxidase isozyme-1 | maxima x ecuadorensis | 51 |
Per-3 | Peroxidase isozyme-3 | maxima x ecuadorensis | 51 | |
Pgi | Pgi-1 | Phosphoglucase isomerase isozyme-1 | pepo | 7 , 20 |
Pgi-2 | Phosphoglucase isomerase isozyme-2 | pepo | 7, 20 | |
Pgi-3 | Phosphoglucase isomerase isozyme-3 | pepo | 7, 20 | |
Pgm-c2 | Phosphoglucomutase cytosolic isozyme-2 | maxima x ecuadorensis | 51 | |
Pgm-p | Phosphoglucomutase plastid isozyme | maxima x ecuadorensis | 51 | |
Pm | Powdery mildew-resistance. Resistance to Sphaerotheca fuliginea | ludelliana | 30 | |
r | reecessive white. White fruit color | pepo | 15 | |
Rd | Red skin. Red external fruit color; dominant to green, white, yellow and gray | maxima | 22 | |
ro | rosette leaf. Lower lobes of leaves slightly spiraled | pepo | 23 | |
s | sterile. Male flowers small, without pollen; female flower sterile | maxima | 19 | |
Ses-B | Selective suppression of gene B1 | pepo | 43 | |
Skdh | Shikimate dehydrogenase isozyme | maxima x ecuadorensis | 51 | |
Sod | Sod-1 | Superoxide dismutase isozyme-1 | maxima x ecudorensis | 51 |
St | lst | Striped fruit. Longitudinal stripes on fruit, conspicuous if l but inconspicuous if l+ | pepo | 35 |
T | Trifluralin resistance. Dominant to susceptibility to the herbicide; modified by I-T | moschata | 1 | |
Tpi-c2 | Triphosphatase isomerase cytosolic isozyme-2 | maxima x ecuadorensis | 51 | |
Tpi-p2 | Triosephosphatase isomerase plastid isozyme-2 | maxima x ecuadorensis | 51 | |
v | virescent. Yellow-green young leaves | maxima | 12 | |
W | White fruit. Dominant to green mature fruit,partially epistatic to Y | pepo | 47 | |
Wf | White flesh. dominant to cream flesh color | pepo | 47 | |
Wt | Warty fruit. Dominant to smooth | pepo | 47 | |
Y | Yellow fruit color. Domimnatn to green | pepo | 47 | |
Ygp | Yellow-green placenta. Dominant to yellow placental color | pepo | 10 | |
ys | yellow seedling. Lacking chlorophyll; lethal | pepo | 23 | |
zym | zucchini yellow mosaic virus resistance | ecuadorensis, moschata; not yet established if these genes are allelic. | 24, 28, 33 |
*Isozyme nomenclature follows a modified form (22) previously described by Richmond (15) and Gottlieb (3).
Literature Cited
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- Cucurbit Gene List Committee. 1979. New Genes for the Cucurbitaceae. Cucurbit Genetics Coop. Rpt. 2:49-53.
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- Decker, D.S. 1985. Numerical analysis of variation in Cucurbita pepo. Econ. Bot. 39:300-309.
- Denna, D.W. and H.M. Munger. 1963. Morphology of the bush and vine habits and the allelism of the bush genes in Cucurbita maxima and C. pepo squash. Proc. Amer. Soc. Hort. Sci. 82:370-377.
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- Dyutin, K.E. 1980. (Spontaneous mutant of Cucurbita maxima Duch. Squash with lobed leaves). Genetika 16:176-178. (In Russian)
- Dyutin, K.E. 1981. (Inheritance of yellow-green coloration of the young leaves in Cucurbita maxima Duch.). Tsitologiya i Genetika 15(5):81-82. (In Russian)
- Eisa, H.M. and H,M, Munger. 1968. Male sterility in Cucurbita pepo. Proc. Amer. Soc. Hort. Sci. 92-473-479.
- Fulks, B.K., J.C. Scheerens and W. P. Bemis. 1979. Sex expression in Cucurbita foetidissima HBK. Cucurbit Genetics Coop. Rpt. 2L36.
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- Hutchins, A.E. 1935. The interaction of blue and green color factors in Hubbard squash. Proc. Amer. Soc. HOrt. Sci. 33:514.
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- Shifriss. O. and H.S. Paris. 1981. Identification of modifier genes affecting the extent of precocious fruit pigmentation in Cucurbita pepo L. J. Amer. Soc. Hort. Sci. 106:653-660.
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It is hoped that scientists will consult the above list as well as the rules of gene nomenclature for the Cucurbitaceae (5, 31) before choosing a gene name and symbol. Thus, inadvertent duplication of gene names and symbols will be prevented. The rules of gene nomenclature were adopted in order to provide guidelines for naming and symbolizing genes previously reported and those which will be reported in the future. Scientists are urged to contact members of the Gene List committee regarding questions in interpreting the nomenclature rules and in naming and symbolizing new genes.
Gene List Committee:
- Cucumber : T.C. Wehner
- Muskmelon : M. Pitrat
- Watermelon : W.R. Henderson
- Cucurbita spp. : R.W. Robinson, M.G. Hutton
- Other genera : R.W. Robinson