Genetic Analysis and QTL Mapping of Fruit Peduncle Length in Cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.)

Mechanized harvesting of cucumbers offers significant advantages compared to manual labor as both shortages and costs of labor increase. However the efficient use of machines depends on breeding plants with longer peduncles, but the genetic and molecular basis of fruit peduncle development in cucumber is not well understood. In this study, F(2) populations were developed from a cross between two inbred lines, 1101 with a long peduncle and 1694 with a short peduncle. These were grown at two field sites, Hainan, with a tropical marine climate, in December 2014, and Beijing, with a warm temperate climate, in May 2015. Electron microscope examination of the pith cells in the peduncles of the two parental lines showed that line 1101 had significantly greater numbers of smaller cells compared to line 1694. The inheritance of cucumber fruit peduncle length (FPL) was investigated by the mixed major gene and polygene inheritance model. Genetic analysis indicated that FPL in cucumber is quantitatively inherited and controlled by one additive major gene and additive-dominant polygenes (D-2 model). A total of 1460 pairs of SSR (simple sequence repeat) primers were analyzed to identify quantitative trait loci (QTLs). Two similar genetic maps with 78 SSR markers which covered 720.6 cM in seven linkage groups were constructed based on two F(2) populations. QTL analysis from the data collected at the two field sites showed that there are two minor QTLs on chromosome 1, named qfpl1.1 and qfpl1.2, and one major QTL on chromosome 6, named qfpl6.1. The marker UW021226, which was the closest one to qfpl6.1, had an accuracy rate of 79.0% when tested against plants selected from populations of the two parents. The results from this study provide insights into the inheritance and molecular mechanism of the variation of FPL in cucumber, and further research will be carried out to fine map qfpl6.1 to develop more accurate markers for MAS breeding.