Genetic discovery could mean new wine

By discovering the genetic difference between red and white grapes, an Australian team hope they can produce new varieties of grapes and ultimately new wines

Glass of the red sir?..its all white in terms of genetic history

It was known that the ancestors of modern grapes are all red, and now researchers from the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) have found the genetic mutations that occurred thousands of years ago to give us white grapes.

“Researchers in Japan have shown that one particular gene, which controls production of anthocyanin, the red pigment in grape skins, was mutated in white varieties,” says team leader Dr Mandy Walker from CSIRO Plant Industry’s Adelaide laboratory. “By closely studying part of a red grapevine chromosome carrying the genes for red colour and comparing it to a white variety chromosome, we found a second similar gene involved in the grape colour pathway that was also different in white varieties.”

The research suggests that extremely rare and independent mutations in two genes produced a single white grapevine that was the parent of almost all of the world’s white grape varieties. If only one gene had been mutated, most grapes would still be red and we would not have the more than 3000 white grape cultivars available today.

“The discovery also has great potential for producing interesting and exciting new varieties with novel colours in the future, through genetic modification. One of the areas of future study is to determine if these two genes control the amount of red pigment made, so the colour of grapes can be improved,” said Dr Walker.