Apple DNA code is cracked by geneticists


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A team of 86 global scientists have sequenced the genetic code of the Golden Delicious apple for the first time.

The DNA breakthrough could result in new and improved apple varieties which are more resistant to disease.

Scientists from 20 institutions took two years to unravel the code - the largest plant genome uncovered to date.

Professor Riccardo Velasco at the Edmund Mach Foundation in Italy, who led the research team, said that sequencing the genome "would have huge implications for applied breeding".

"This breakthrough will help us to develop high quality traits and bring new things to the apple market," he told BBC News.

Kate Evans from the Washington State University's Tree Fruit Research and Extension Centre said the discovery would help would help "long-term sustainable production" of apples.

Scientists hope improvements to the popular Golden Delicious variety - which originated in West Virginia, US, more than a century ago - could enhance the taste, look, and crunchiness of the fruit.

A large number of genes gives a plant a competitive advantage giving more inbuilt defences against disease.

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