Study of tomato lines with high nutritive quality

Study was performed on tomato lines from the cultivated species carrying mutant genes hp and og^c, as well as on lines originating from hybridization between Lycopesicon esculentum Mill. and Lycopersicon pimpinellifolium Mill.or Lycopersicon chilense Dunal for evaluate their genetic potential to synthesize high lycopene. The first steps of our study centered on evaluating the methodology of comparison, and the number of screening procedures necessary for determining individual plants or lines possessing potential to synthesize high lycopene content in tomato fruit. A relatively large scale of variation throughout the harvest dates was observed in lycopene content of the lines and hybrids studied but the genotypes investigated ranked almost in the same way despite of the variability in the pigment content. It was found that the genotypes possessing genetic potential to synthesize high lycopene content might be assessed based on one only analysis. Fruit should be collected and analyzed at one harvest date. Studies aiming at fingerprinting and evaluation of DNA variability among tomato lines from diverse origin or possessing genes enhancing lycopene content, as well as on some of their F₁ hybrids, were carried out. The AFLP molecular data indicated very low level of genetic heterogeneity in the studied tomato lines which relative frequency was 0.06. Selective markers with a direct application in the molecular selection of tomato lines and hybrids with economically valuable mutant characters were revealed. The origin of the studied tomato lines make them genetically heterogeneous. Grouping performed on the basis of AFLP patterns corroborated the genotypes origin data in most of the cases. (author)