Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 11, 2025

Using Phylogenetic Analysis to Investigate Eukaryotic Gene Origin
Published on: August 14, 2018
Whole-Genome Resequencing Identifies SNPs in Sucrose Synthase and Sugar Transporter Genes Associated with Sweetness
Manlika Khongmaluan1, Wanchana Aesomnuk2, Reajina Dumhai2
1Department of Agronomy, Faculty of Agriculture at Kamphaeng Saen, Kasetsart University Kamphaeng Saen Campus, Nakhon Pathom 73140, Thailand.
Abstract:
Coconut (Cocos nucifera L.) is an important agricultural commodity with substantial economic and nutritional value, widely used for various products, including coconut water. The sweetness is an important quality trait of coconut water, which is influenced by genetic and environmental factors. In this study, we utilized next-generation sequencing to identify genetic variations in the coconut genome associated with the sweetness of coconut water. Whole-genome resequencing of 49 coconut accessions, including diverse germplasm and an F2 population of 81 individuals, revealed ~27 M SNPs and ~1.5 M InDels. Sugar content measured by °Bx was highly variable across all accessions tested, with dwarf varieties generally sweeter. A comprehensive analysis of the sugar profiles revealed that sucrose was the major sugar contributing to sweetness. Allele mining of the 148 genes involved in sugar metabolism and transport and genotype-phenotype association tests revealed two significant SNPs in the hexose carrier protein (Cnu01G018720) and sucrose synthase (Cnu09G011120) genes associated with the higher sugar content in both the germplasm and F2 populations. This research provides valuable insights into the genetic basis of coconut sweetness and offers molecular markers for breeding programs aimed at improving coconut water quality. The identified variants can improve the selection process in breeding high-quality sweet coconut varieties and thus support the economic sustainability of coconut cultivation.
Related Concept Videos
Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms-SNPs
Glucose Absorption Into the Small Intestine
Genome-wide Association Studies-GWAS
GWAS does not require the identification of the target gene involved in...
Phloem and Sugar Transport
Comparing Copy Number Variations and SNPs
Copy number variations or CNVs are the structural variations that cover more than 1kb of DNA sequence. The single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP), on the other hand, is a single nucleotide change or a point mutation that is found in more than 1%...
Glucose Transporters
Facilitated diffusion-glucose transporters (GLUTs) are encoded by the solute-linked carrier (SLC) family 2, subfamily A gene family, or SLC2A. The 14 GLUT protein members are distributed into three classes:

