Collection and characterization of grapevine genetic resources (Vitis vinifera) in the Holy Land, towards the renewal of ancient winemaking practices

Abstract

The importance and extent of wine consumption in all life aspects at the Holy Land is well documented. The Muslim influence in this region led to the abandonment of winemaking practices, and possible loss of indigenous wine varieties. Here we present a country wide collection of the local grapevine population including wild and cultivated forms, and its characterization by genetic, ampelographic and enological methods. The ampelographic analysis shows clear differences between Sativa and Sylvestris groups in flower, leaf and cluster parameters, and that most Sativa belong to proles orientalis. Genetic population analysis was conducted by analyzing 22 common SSR markers, determining first the unique genotypes, and internally assessing the population’s structure, showing the existence of two distinct Sativa and Sylvestris populations, and a third mixed one. Likewise, the relationship between the Israeli grapevine population and grapevine populations in Europe and parts of Asia was investigated, showing that the Israeli Sativa and Sylvestris populations cluster closely together, suggesting a common genetic source. Lastly, the enological characteristics of selected Sativa and Sylvestris genotypes are presented, demonstrating their potential for quality wine production. This research significantly contributes toward the re-establishment of indigenous and traditional local grapevine varieties into the modern international wine industry.

Genetic analysis of the grapevine genotypes of the Russian Vitis ampelographic collection using iPBS markers

“…Genotyping, performed with iPBS markers, was an effective method for finding differences between varieties and their clones as well as one of the tools for grapevine (Butorac et al 2018;Drori et al 2017). Additionally, the shape of the phylogenetic tree displayed division of its clusters into varietal groups.…”

A multivariate approach for the ampelographic discrimination of grapevine (Vitis vinifera) cultivars: application to local Syrian genetic resources

“…Conscious of the relevance of preserving these invaluable local genetic resources, and looking for the development of better adapted new grapevine cultivars and clones, the Arab Center for the Studies of Arid Zones and Dry lands (ACSAD) established in 1996 a Gene Bank collection in the Jillin Research Station after the prospection of locally-grown traditional varieties. Despite its wide interest, and in contrast to local genetic resources from nearby regions (Aroutiounian et al 2015;Basheer-Salimia et al 2014;Chalak et al 2016;Drori et al 2017;Ekhvaia et al 2014;Ergül et al 2002;Eyduran et al 2015;Fatahi et al 2003;Khadivi-Khub et al 2014;Lamine et al 2014), few local Syrian grapevine cultivars have been adequately described so far (Sawaf et al 1976).…”

Identification of disease resistance-linked alleles in Vitis vinifera germplasm

“…The list of molecular markers and conditions of analysis were previously reported [7]. Population genetic structure and main diversity statistics were investigated with STRUCTURE v2.3.4 and GenAlex v6.502 software, including homologous genetic data of the grapevine germplasm from Central Asia and Israel as described by [8,9].…”