Issue Information

TL;DR

This paper explores how carotenoid levels vary in strawberries and identifies a gene that influences yellow flesh color and carotenoid accumulation.

Contribution

The study identifies FaCCD4(4B) as a key gene influencing carotenoid levels and yellow flesh in strawberries.

Findings

FaCCD4 gene expression at chromosome 4B determines carotenoid accumulation and yellow flesh in strawberries.

Interspecific F2 population and diverse strawberry accessions show significant variation in carotenoid levels.

Reduced FaCCD4(4B) activity leads to enhanced carotenoid accumulation and yellow pigmentation.

Abstract

Front cover image:

Most strawberries accumulate anthocyanins in their epidermis and flesh, masking other important pigments as carotenoids. Therefore, despite their importance to plants and human nutrition, the mechanisms regulating natural variation of carotenoids in strawberry fruit remain largely unexplored. Amaya and colleagues reveal substantial variation using an interspecific F2 population and also diverse accessions from the cultivated strawberry Fragaria × ananassa and the beach strawberry F. chiloensis. Differential expression of the FaCCD4 gene at chromosome 4B, encoding a carotenoid cleavage dioxygenase, is a mayor determinant of carotenoid accumulation and yellow flesh. The cover image features two fruits from distinct individuals of the interspecific F2 population. The fruit in the foreground, displaying yellow pigmentation, exhibits reduced FaCCD4(4B) activity, which results in enhanced carotenoid accumulation. Cover illustration refers to the article published in this issue (Amaya et al., pp. 679–691).

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