S-genotyping Supports the Genetic Relationships between Turkish and Hungarian Apricot Germplasm

The S-genotypes of a set of Turkish and Hungarian apricot (Prunus armeniaca L.) cultivars were determined by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification of their S-RNase intron regions. In addition, the S-genotyping method was extended to the SFB gene to detect the non-functional S(C)-haplotype and hence reliably identify self-compatible apricot cultivars. We determined the complete S-genotype of 51 cultivars and the partial S-genotype of four cultivars. A total of 32 different S-genotypes were assigned to the 51 cultivars, and many of them (28) were classified into newly established cross-incompatibility groups HI through XIV. Another 12 cultivars demonstrated unique incompatible genotypes and seven self-compatible cultivars were identified in the examined accessions. The fact that Turkish and Hungarian apricot cultivars carry 12 and five S-alleles, respectively, and all five alleles detected in Hungarian cultivars were also present in Turkish apricots furnished molecular evidence supporting the long-suspected historical connection between Hungarian and Turkish apricots. The connection between these two gene pools appeared to be relatively recent and associated with historical events dating back 300 years. Our results confirm that Turkish germplasm contributed considerably to the development of several desirable Hungarian apricot cultivars. Results suggest that the mutation rendering the S(C)-haplotype non-functional might have occurred somewhere east of central Turkey.