Project Number: 3655-21000-051-00
Project Type: Appropriated

Start Date: May 09, 2008
End Date: May 08, 2013

Objective:
Objective 1: Acquire, conserve and distribute worldwide a broad diversity of potato genetic resources and associated information. Sub-objective 1.A. Strategically expand genebank holdings of potato cultivars, genetic stocks for anti-oxidants, tomatine glycoalkaloids, pigment and floral mutants, and wild relatives of potato from the southwestern United States. Sub-objective 1.B. Conserve more than 5,600 accessions of potato and its wild relatives by regenerating annually 100 seed populations, 900 in vitro clones, and 70 tuber families of potato and its wild relatives. Sub-objective 1.C. Distribute on request potato genetic resources and information that meet the specific needs of researchers and breeders, each year updating Web page and notices transmitted to e-mail list of cooperators. Objective 2: Strategically incorporate high-quality, comprehensive, priority phenotypic (evaluation) data for potato genetic resources into GRIN and/or other databases. Sub-objective 2.A. Incorporate into GRIN and/or other databases phenotypic (evaluation) data from cooperator¿s (D. Spooner) literature review and other evaluation data which subsequently become available from published and unpublished sources. Sub-objective 2.B. Incorporate phenotypic (evaluation) data from ¿in-house¿ studies of vigor; late blight resistance; gibberellin mutants; and tuber anti-oxidants, acidity, calcium, potassium, and anti-cancer PCI into GRIN and/or other databases.

Approach:
Access new germplasm as donations from other genebanks/programs, mutants selected in house, collection trips in the southwest USA. Propagation status and health will be monitored with a computer database. Botanical seed accessions will be propagated in virus-free green- and screenhouses. All new acquisitions will be quarantined until proven clean. Seed moisture and storage temperatures will be maintained at known optima, with confirming germination tests on each accession at least every five years. We will grow and intermate 20 parent plants of each seed increase accession to replenish inventory and/or germination. Germplasm orders and requests for information will be processed within one week of receipt. Engage in outreach activities to professional meetings and use webpage to assess distribution effectiveness. Identify pertinent publications, sift for evaluation data, and incorporate into GRIN. Summarize and format data from in house characterization projects. Publish results of novel evaluation studies in peer reviewed journals and present as talks or posters at professional society meetings as appropriate. Finally, advertise availabiilty to germplasm user group.