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Research Interests:
- Identifying and incorporating resistance to two fungal diseases of blueberry, mummy berry (Monilinia vacinii-corymbosi) and anthracnose fruit-rot (Colletotrichum acutatum).
- Developing screening procedures to allow for early evaluation of resistance, mechanisms of resistance, and studies of inheritance in Blueberry
- The breeding program has ongoing studies of germplasm introgression, utilizing V. ashei, V. constablaei, and V. darrowi, and studies of fruit quality characteristics focused on organic acid composition and firmness.
- The USDA blueberry breeding program co-operates with programs in seven states, and distributes materials of both highbush and rabbiteye blueberries. The program supports continued evaluation and variety release with state co-operators, and has released four cultivars in the last four years.
- Constructing a genetic map of blueberry using molecular markers.
- Understanding genetic control of chilling requirement and cold hardiness in blueberry.
- Identifying DNA markers linked to genes controlling chilling requirement, cold hardiness, and other traits of horticultural significance.
- DNA fingerprinting of blueberry cultivars.
- Isolating cold responsive genes from blueberry
- Developing EST markers for blueberry
Research Goals
- Isolating and characterizing genes encoding the three dehydrin-like proteins and other cold-responsive proteins from blueberry
- Testing hypotheses that these proteins play a causal role in determining chilling requirement or level of cold hardiness.
- Developing and utilizing tissue culture and gene transfer techniques for the improvement of blueberry
- Improving transformation and shoot regeneration frequencies in blueberry.
The scientists who work with Blueberries are:
- Dr. Mark Ehlenfeldt
- Dr. Jeanine Rowland
- Dr. Freddi Hammerschlag
- Dr. Jim Polashock
- Dr. Shiow Wang
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Last Modified: 01/22/2008
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