Olive Germplasm - Italian Catalogue of Olive Varieties

The olive (Olea europaea) is increasingly recognized as a crop of great economic and health importance world-wide. Olive growing in Italy is very important, but there is still a high degree of confusion regarding the genetic identity of cultivars. This book is a source of recently accumulated information on olive trees and on olive oil industry. The objective of this book is to provide knowledge which is appropriate for students, scientists, both experienced and inexperienced horticulturists and, in general, for anyone wishing to acquire knowledge and experience of olive cultivation to increase productivity and improve product quality. The book is divided into two parts: I) the olive cultivation, table olive and olive oil industry in Italy and II) Italian catalogue of olive varieties. All chapters have been written by renowned professionals working on olive cultivation, table olives and olive oil production and related disciplines. Part I covers all aspects of olive fruit production, from site selection, recommended varieties, pest and disease control, to primary and secondary processing. Part II contains the chapter on the description of Italian olive varieties. It is well illustrated and includes 200 elaiographic cards with colour photos, graphs and tables

Recovery and characterisation of DNA from virgin olive oil

The characterisation of the genetic identity of DNA recoverable from olive oil could facilitate the assessment of its place of origin and conformity to type thanks to the particular regional spread of olive cultivars and to their different contributions to the olive oil mixture as stated by each Protected Designation of Origin regulation. This requires that intact DNA should be recovered from virgin olive oil. In an attempt to recover DNA from virgin olive oil, the performance of three different oil production methods was compared. The recorded data demonstrate that only olive oil obtained by using proteinase K treatment during the malaxation process contains DNA amenable to random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD)-PCR amplification. This important result represents the first unambiguous and reproducible RAPD-PCR amplification of DNA recovered from virgin olive oil

Identicação de grupos de cultivares italianos de oliva com marcadores microssatélites

Cultivar characterization for fruit trees certification requires fast, efficient and reliable techniques. Microsatellite markers (SSR) were used in the molecular characterization of 23 genotypes of Olea europaea subsp europaea. The DNA from the olive cultivars was analyzed using nine pre-selected SSR primers (GAPU59, GAPU71A, GAPU71B, GAPU103A, UDO99-01, UDO99-12, UDO99-28 and UDO99-39) and revealed 29 alleles, which allowed each genotype to be identified. In the dendrogram, the nine primers allowed the 23 olive genotypes to be grouped into subgroups corresponding to the same cultivar denominations. SSR markers proved to be efficient and reliable for the molecular characterization of Italian olive cultivars.A caracterização de cultivares na produção de mudas certificadas exige técnicas rápidas, eficientes e confiáveis. Marcadores microssatélites (SSR) foram utilizados objetivando a caracterização molecular de 23 genótipos de Olea europaea subsp europaea. O DNA das cultivares foi analisado por meio de nove primers SSR pré-selecionados (GAPU59, GAPU71A, GAPU71B, GAPU103A, UDO99-01, UDO99-12, UDO99-28 and UDO99-39) e reveleram um total de 29 alelos que permitiram individualizar cada um dos genótipos. No dendrograma, os nove primers permitiram a separação dos 23 genótipos, em subgrupos. Os SSR foram eficientes e confiaveis para a caracterização molecular de cultivares italianeo de oliva

RAPD-PCR amplification of DNA from virgin olive oil

The characterization of the genetic identity of DNA recoverable from olive oil could facilitate the identification of the source cultivar. This requires that intact DNA or large fragments suitable for amplification by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) should be recovered from olive oil. This paper presents the preliminary results of an experiment evaluating the extent to which DNA recoverable from the veiled virgin olive (cv. Carolea) oil would allow PCR amplification useful for random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) fingerprinting. Only residual DNA from olive oil sediments obtained by protease treatment was useful in RAPD-PCR amplification