Molecular mapping of Or, a gene inducing beta-carotene accumulation in cauliflower (Brassica oleracea L. var. botrytis)

The cauliflower (Brassica oleracea L. var. botrytis) Or gene is a semi-dominant, single-locus mutation that induces the accumulation of high levels of beta-carotene in various tissues of the plant, turning them orange. As part of a map-based cloning strategy, molecular mapping of the Or gene in the cauliflower genome was undertaken in a mapping population consisting of 195 F2 individuals. By using amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) in conjunction with bulked segregant analysis, we identified 10 AFLP markers closely linked to the Or gene. Four of the most closely linked flanking markers were converted into restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) markers. Mapping of these markers in the mapping population placed two of them at 0.5 cM from the Or locus on one side, while another marker flanked the Or gene at 1.6 cM on the other side. Three of these markers were also successfully converted into sequence-characterized amplified region (SCAR) markers. These PCR-based markers will be useful for a large-scale application in facilitating the positional cloning of the Or gene.