Accumulation of two distinct alleles causes astringency loss in cultivated polyploid persimmon
- 1Kyoto University
Abstract
Persimmon fruit accumulates high levels of proanthocyanidins (PAs), causing extreme astringency. In pollination-constant and non-astringent (PCNA) cultivars, PA accumulation ceases early in fruit development. Although the PCNA trait is recessively controlled by the ASTRINGENCY (AST) locus, its causal gene has remained unknown. Using haplotype-resolved forward genetics in a hexaploid genetic background, we identified the previously uncharacterized TANNIN (TAN) as the causal gene. Long-read sequencing revealed that PCNA originated through the accumulation of independently derived ast alleles that cause transcriptional deficiency of TAN. These findings resolve the complex genetic basis of natural astringency loss in persimmon and provide a framework for molecular breeding. Further investigation of TAN function would uncover mechanisms underlying massive accumulation of PAs in persimmon fruit and insight into specialized metabolite sequestration.
Related
- From Waste to Value: Producing a Non-Astringent Persimmon Paste from Discarded 'Rojo Brillante' Fruit.
- Snow carps as an emerging model for polyploid genome evolution
- Gap‐Free Cannabis sativa Assemblies Reveal Post‐Polyploid Genome Remodelling and Refine the Evolution of Cannabinoid Synthase Genes
- Poly Pipeline: A Polyvalent Spatial Transcriptomics Workflow Validated Across Polyploid and Diploid Organisms
- Polyploid Achromatium sp. expresses protein variants based on environmental cues
BibTeX
@misc{fujiwara2026accumulation,
title = {{Accumulation of two distinct alleles causes astringency loss in cultivated polyploid persimmon}},
author = {Y. Fujiwara and S. Nishiyama and N. Onoue and R. Matsuzaki and A. Kono and A. Azuma and T. Saito and T. Shimizu and A. Sato and T. Ichino and H. Yamane and K. Yonemori and R. Tao},
howpublished = {bioRxiv},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.64898/2026.10.31.762479},
url = {https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.10.31.762479v1},
note = {CC BY-NC},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - Accumulation of two distinct alleles causes astringency loss in cultivated polyploid persimmon
AU - Y. Fujiwara
AU - S. Nishiyama
AU - N. Onoue
AU - R. Matsuzaki
AU - A. Kono
AU - A. Azuma
AU - T. Saito
AU - T. Shimizu
AU - A. Sato
AU - T. Ichino
AU - H. Yamane
AU - K. Yonemori
AU - R. Tao
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/31
PB - bioRxiv
DO - 10.64898/2026.10.31.762479
UR - https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.10.31.762479v1
AB - Persimmon fruit accumulates high levels of proanthocyanidins (PAs), causing extreme astringency. In pollination-constant and non-astringent (PCNA) cultivars, PA accumulation ceases early in fruit development. Although the PCNA trait is recessively controlled by the ASTRINGENCY (AST) locus, its causal gene has remained unknown. Using haplotype-resolved forward genetics in a hexaploid genetic background, we identified the previously uncharacterized TANNIN (TAN) as the causal gene. Long-read sequencing revealed that PCNA originated through the accumulation of independently derived ast alleles that cause transcriptional deficiency of TAN. These findings resolve the complex genetic basis of natural astringency loss in persimmon and provide a framework for molecular breeding. Further investigation of TAN function would uncover mechanisms underlying massive accumulation of PAs in persimmon fruit and insight into specialized metabolite sequestration.
ER -