Xylem vessel blockages in grape pedicel growing in tropical climate observed by microtomography

Astringency has been defined by the American Society for Testing Materials as “the complex of sensations due to shrinking, drawing or puckering of the epithelium as a result of exposure to substances such as alums or tannins”. Regarding the importance of astringency in wine consumer acceptance, elucidating the molecular mechanisms underpinning this complex sensation represents an important goal for scientists. Although different mechanisms have been described (Gibbins & Carpenter, 2013), the salivary protein precipitation is still the most accepted theory. According to this, wine astringency perceived in the oral cavity is originally attributed to the interaction and subsequence precipitation of salivary proteins by wine tannins –mainly flavanols–.

La délimitation de l’aire de production d’une appellation d’origine contrôlée française est une opération essentielle. Le décret-loi du 30 juillet 1935, qui a créé le système des appellations d’origine contrôlées

In table grapes seedlessness is a crucial breeding target, mainly results from stenospermocarpy, linked to the Thompson Seedless variety. Several studies investigated the genetic control of seedlessness identifying AGL11, a MADS-box transcription factor, as a crucial gene.
We performed a deep investigation of the whole AGL11 gene sequence in a collection of grapevine varieties revealing three different promoter-CDS combinations. By investigating the expression of the three AGL11 alleles and evaluating their ability to activate the promoter region, we show that AGL11 regulates its transcription in a specific promoter-CDS manner. By a multi-AGL11 co-expression analysis we identified a methyl jasmonate esterase, an indole-3-acetate beta-glucosyltransferase, and an isoflavone reductase as top AGL11 candidate targets. In vivo experiments further confirmed AGL11 role in regulating these genes, demonstrating its significant influence in seed development and thus in seedlessness trait.

As the quality and typicity of wine are influenced by the climate, it is essential to have a good knowledge of climate variability, especially with regard to temperature, which has a great impact on vine behavior and grape ripening.

More recently, studies have shown that polyphenols could also prevent or improve vision in patients with ocular diseases and especially Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) which is an eye disease characterized by damage to the central part of the retina, the macula, and that affects millions of people worldwide. Despite therapeutic advances thanks to the use of anti-vascular