Vaccinium corymbosum strain:Ozark Blue, O''Neal, Pamlico, Lenoir Transcriptome or Gene expression

Cultivated and wild blueberries (genus Vaccinium) possess well-documented health-protective properties. Although the precise chemical basis of these health-protective effects is still unknown, research done thus far suggests that anthocyanin pigments and polyphenolics are largely responsible. This project aims to identify the repertoire of biosynthetic genes involved in synthesis of bioactive compounds in berry fruit using a combined genomics and metabolomics approach, ultimately leading to tools breeders will use to develop berry varieties with enhanced health-protective properties. This bioproject describes RNA-Seq analysis of ripe and unripe berries from southern highbush blueberry cultivars O''Neal, Pamlico, Ozark blue, and Lenoir. The main goals of this analysis were to (1) identify genetic differences (SNPs) between cultivars, (2) identify genes that are up-regulated in ripe fruit, and (3) provide sequence data enabling assembly and annotation of blueberry genes. Ultimately, our aim was to identify enzymes and regulatory factors involved in synthesis of health-protective compounds in blueberry fruit.