S02 - Session P5 - Molecular characterization of Romanian apple cultivars for the identification of scab and powdery mildew resistance genes

Authors: Monica Sturzeanu *, Adina Iancu, Madalina Militaru

Scab (caused by Venturia inaequalis ), and powdery mildew (caused by Podosphaera leucotricha ) are Romania's most threatening apple diseases. The use of resistant apple cultivars is the best way to control these fungi. Therefore apple breeding programs have included disease resistance as a primary goal. In this study, molecular markers were used for detecting scab and powdery mildew genes in 50 apple cultivars bred in different research units of Romania. For the identification of Rvi6 ( Vf ), Rvi4 (Vr1), Rvi2 (Vh2) and Rvi8 (Vh8) scab resistance genes, five SCAR molecular markers were used, while for Rvi5 (Vm) gene, one STS molecular marker. For the identification of Pl-w , Pl-1 and Pl-d powdery mildew resistance genes, SCAR and RAPD molecular markers were used. The Rvi6 gene was detected in 26 cultivars from different Romanian breeding centres. The marker AD13 was present in the genome of some cultivars, such as 'Romus 3', 'Romus 5', 'Generos', 'Iris', 'Irisem', 'Cezar', 'Remar', 'Aura'. The Rvi5 gene was revealed only in three cultivars ('Nicol', 'Generos', 'Irisem').