Characterization of the USDA Tart Cherry (Prunus cerasus) Collection in Geneva, NY Kyra Battaglia, Molly Carroll, Heidi Schwaninger, and Ben Gutierrez

USDA-ARS, Plant Genetics Resource Unit, Cornell AgriTech, Geneva,NY, 14456

Introduction Results The sweet cherry (Prunus avium) and that tart cherry (Prunus ● All anthocyanins, acids, and flavanols are correlated except for neochlorogenic acid cerasus) are the two main species grown commercially, with ● Boxplots show the distribution of the samples for variables tested, with the value for ‘Montmorency’ dominating the tart cherry production in the US1. ‘Montmorency’ highlighted in red Different characteristics are considered when determining the marketability of a cherry including fruit weight, flesh to pit ratio, acidity, TSS, aromatic compounds, and anthocyanin content.3,4 These characteristics also contribute to reported health benefits through the consumption of cherries, including a decrease in inflammation and a decrease in oxidative stress.2 With 200 cultivars worldwide1, understanding the diversity of each is important for both research and breeding purposes. This experiment analyzed the 130 tart cherry accessions across 7 Figure 5: PCA different species within the USDA’s collection, using data from Biplot. The first 2011, 2013, 2014, and 2019 in order to accurately assess the two components diversity. account for 54.9% of the variation.

Figure 1: Gradient of select cherries from the USDA’s collection. From left to right, top to bottom: Montmorency, Mesabi, Ferracida, Emperor Francis, Spantsche Glaskirsche, Espera, Hudson, Englaise Timpurii, Ljubskaja x P. maximovici.

Materials and Methods

Sample Collection ●Determined which trees were not previously tested ●Collected 50 pieces of ripe fruit from trees that were only sampled once before, or that had not yet been tested Figure 6: Boxplots of all fruit quality characteristics. The value for ‘Montmorency’ is highlighted in red. Figure 2: P. avium sample after collection, before being weighed Discussion

●Weighed, de-pit fruit, weighed ● Multiple variables influence the similarities between cherries, as seen by the low percentage Test Preparation again, measured Brix of five in PCA1 on the PCA biplot fruits ● Although it is a positive that ‘Montmorency’ is an abundant producer, this variety has several ●HPLC: Took five cherries from negative qualities sample, prepared according ● There are other cherry varieties that can be produced commercially and/or used to cultivate to lab protocol. a new variety with ideal fruit quality ●GC-MS: Juiced remainder of cherries, prepared samples Conclusions according to lab protocol. Figure 3: Juiced Samples before ●pH: used 15 ML of juice, ● The collection of this data affords the opportunity to create an updated reference to the preparation for GC-MS and Auto prepared, ran autotitrator germplasm which will be made publicly available through the Germplasm Resources Titration. Information Network (GRIN-Global) ● This information can be used for future research and by breeders for developing new ●Analyzed HPLC data cultivars with optimal characteristics Analysis using Multi Chromatograph. The References major anthocyanins found 1Blando, F., & Oomah, B. D. (2019). Sweet and sour cherries: Origin, distribution, nutritional composition and health benefits. Trends in Food Science & Technology, 86, 517–529. 2Kelley, D. S., Adkins, Y., & Laugero, K. D. (2018). A Review of the Health Benefits of Cherries. Nutrients, 10(3), 368. in cherries were identified 3Siddiq, M., Iezzoni, A., Khan, A., Breen, P., Sebolt, A. M., Dolan, K. D., & Ravi, R. (2011). Characterization of New Tart Cherry (Prunus cerasus L.): Selections Based on Fruit Quality, Total Anthocyanins, and Antioxidant Capacity. International Journal of Food Properties, 14(2), 471–480. and quantified by peak 4Yue, C., Gallardo, R. K., Luby, J. J., Rihn, A. L., McFerson, J. R., McCracken, V., … Iezzoni, A. (2014). An Evaluation of U.S. Tart and Sweet Cherry Producers Trait Prioritization: area (mAU) Evidence from Audience Surveys. HortScience, 49(7), 931–937.

●Analyzed GC-MS data Acknowledgments Figure 4: P. cerasus (Plant ID: ●Combined with data from Kentish) HPLC Chromatograph. Kyra Battaglia was supported through the USDA-ARS Plant Genetic Resources Unit and the USDA-ARS Northeast Area 2011, 2013, and 2014 Summer Research Internship. We are grateful to the Cornell Geneva Summer Scholars Program for their additional support.