Wild Grape Diversity

Crop wild relatives (CWRs) serve as vital reservoirs of genetic variation for crop improvement. North America is home to approximately 30 wild Vitis species with Appalachia’s Blue Ridge Mountains (BRMs) being home to many of them. While species richness is exceptionally high in the eastern United States, the genetic diversity within and across these species remains poorly characterized. The region’s significant elevation gradients and microclimatic variations likely contribute to allelic richness for stress and disease resistance in wild grapes. The CoEvolutionLab is using long and short-read whole-genome sequencing coupled with pangenome-graph based genotyping approaches to capture extent of the BRM wild grape genetic diversity.