Rocket salad (Diplotaxis spp., Eruca spp.) is a leafy vegetable rich in health-promoting compounds and widely consumed. In the present study, metabolic profiles of 40 rocket accessions mainly retrieved from gene banks were assessed. Seven glucosinolates (GLSs) and 15 flavonol compounds were detected across genotypes. Dimeric 4-mercaptobutyl-GLS and 4-(β-d-glucopyranosyldisulfanyl)butyl-GLS were the major components of the total glucosinolate content. Flavonols were different between genera, with the exception of isorhamnetin 3,4'-diglucoside. Morphoagronomic traits and color coordinates were also scored. Results showed a negative correlation between color and GLSs, indicating these last as responsible for the increase of the intensity of green and yellow pigments as well as for the darkness of the leaf, whereas agronomic traits showed positive correlation with GLSs. Genetic diversity was assessed using inter simple sequence repeat (ISSR) markers, allowing separation of the accessions on the basis of the species and elucidating the observations made by means of phenotypic data.

Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) is one of the most important vegetable crops highly appreciated for the nutritional properties and content of beneficial compounds for human health. After its domestication, this crop has been spread throughout the world and found its secondary centre of diversification in the Mediterranean basin, where numerous landraces have been developed. Among these, ‘San Marzano’ is a famous and remunerative PDO variety for processing and fresh market consumption. ‘Re Fiascone’ is an ancient cultivar for which ongoing efforts aim to promote its diffusion and commercialisation. Both find their origin in the Campania region in Southern Italy where in the past decades, several accessions have been selected and handed down by farmers. This study reports a comprehensive assessment for morphological and biochemical traits of twenty-one accessions of the two landraces. Fruit morphology and content of sugars and flavonoids were the most discriminating parameters among cultivars. Among sugars and organic acids, fructose and citric acid were the most represented compounds, respectively. We found level of trans-lycopene and β-carotene up to 112.82 and 16.29 µg g−1 of fresh product, respectively, while ascorbic acid levels reached values up to 22.48 mg 100 g−1 of fresh weight. Molecular analysis has been performed using a double approach for microsatellite genotyping based on capillary electrophoresis and high-resolution melting. Results highlighted a separation of the accessions according to ‘Re Fiascone’ and ‘San Marzano’ identifying both unique and admixed accessions between the two groups. The study approach aims at the recovery and valorisation of local genetic resources, but also at the identification of traits of interest to transfer in breeding programs.

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During the last three years, more than 300 landraces belonging to different plant species have been the main focus of an Italian valorization research project (AgroBiodiversità Campana, ABC) aiming at analyzing, recovering, preserving, and collecting local biodiversity. In this context, phytosanitary investigation plays a key role in identifying potential threats to the preservation of healthy seeds in gene banks and the successful cultivation of landraces. The surveillance carried out in this study, in addition to highlighting the expected presence of common species-specific pathogens such as Ascochyta pisi in peas, Ascochyta fabae in broad beans, and Macrophomina phaseolina, Xanthomonas axonopodis pv. phaseoli, and Xanthomonas fuscans subsp. fuscans in beans, pointed to the presence of novel microorganisms never detected before in the seeds of some hosts (Apiospora arundinis in common beans or Sclerotinia sclerotiorum and Stemphylium vesicarium in broad beans). These novel seedborne pathogens were fully characterized by (i) studying their morphology, (ii) identifying them by molecular methods, and (iii) studying their impact on adult crop plants. For the first time, this study provides key information about three novel seedborne pathogens that can be used to correctly diagnose their presence in seed lots, helping prevent the outbreaks of new diseases in the field.

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