Partnership Blooms Between Computing Center, Fruit Breeding Program

Photo by Fred Miller, Division of Agriculture Communications

John Clark, University Professor of horticulture, at the Division of Agriculture Fruit Research Station in Clarksville

A partnership is blossoming between the Arkansas High Performance Computing Center and the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture’s fruit breeding program.

In 2015, the fruit breeding program reported a dozen significant findings in fruit quality and disease resistance traits using phenotypic and genotypic data. The researchers generated the results in conjunction with staff at the computing center.

“This connection with the Arkansas High Performance Computing Center is allowing us to evaluate DNA sequencing to parallel classical phenotypic observation – what we see in that tree,” said John Clark, University Professor of horticulture who leads the fruit breeding program. “This is providing us accuracy of knowing what that genotype is to clearly help us manage the development of superior phenotypes.”

Collaborating with the computing center also accelerated work that usually takes many years through classical breeding techniques.

“A fruit variety can take 10 to 20 years to develop,” Clark said. “Using the new molecular technology can not only increase the efficiency of the process but potentially shorten the interval from idea to product.”

Go to Research Frontiers to learn more about the collaboration.