What It Takes To Help Make Flavor of Strawberries More Superior

By UF/IFAS News|August 11, 2022

In their quest to improve strawberry flavor, University of Florida scientists have found the genes behind several aromatic chemicals that enhance the fruit’s taste. These findings will help UF/IFAS researchers Vance Whitaker and Seonghee Lee as they study the sources of the unique aroma in strawberries. As with many fruits, the genes that control aroma and flavor are connected.

“Finding the sources of a strawberry’s smell gets complicated,” says Whitaker. “Aroma comes from more than 100 chemicals, so studying the genetics can become byzantine.”

For the recently published study authored by Whitaker and Lee for the journal New Phytologist, a team of scientists found the genes behind several dozen aromatic chemicals and the regulators that turn the genes on as the fruit ripens.

First, they harvested more than 300 types of strawberries with different scents. Then they measured the chemicals from each. They also sequenced DNA of each of the approximately 100,000 genes in a given strawberry.

“Finding the genes that bring out the aroma is a big step forward in understanding the genetics of flavor,” Whitaker says. “With this knowledge, we are developing tools such as DNA markers to breed more efficiently for flavor.”