The collections are at the heart of much of the research carried out in the Genetics and Breeding of Fruits and Vegetables research unit and form the basis of many collaborations with research institutes and breeders.

Through this scientific article, discover how the gene bank was constituted, the characteristics of the material currently present, the conservation methods, the descriptors used, the current databases and finally a look at how the material has been used in different research programs.

The accessions in the collections have geographically diverse origins, are generally well described and fixed for traits of agronomic or scientific interest and have passport data. In addition to currently maintaining over 10,000 accessions (between 900 and 3000 accessions per crop), the Biological Resource Center (BRC) maintains scientific collections such as core collections and bi- or multiparental populations, which have also been genotyped with SNP markers. Each collection has its own merits and strengths, which are discussed in this review: the eggplant collection is a rich source of wild Solanum relatives; the bell pepper, melon, and lettuce collections have been screened for resistance to plant pathogens, including viruses, fungi, oomycetes, and insects; and the tomato collection has been the focus of genome-wide association studies for fruit quality traits and environmental stress tolerance.

The availability of genotyping and phenotypic data has improved the collections, with long-term prospects, but there is a need to know which accessions are complementary, showing the importance of having a biological resource inventory or genotyping data for the collections.

Contact :

• Rebecca Stevens (rebecca.stevens@inrae.fr)
• Unité de Génétique et Amélioration des Fruits et Légumes, INRAE, 84140 Montfavet, France