Presence of Gene Del in Wild Species of the Genus Lycopersicon Mill.

The carotene composition of the fruits of F₁ hybrids between Lycopersicon esculentum Mill. — cv. 1/D (genotype Del⁺Dd⁺) and wild species of genus Lycopersicon with various fruit pigmentation — red, orange, and green — has been investigated. The results reveal that the red and orange-fruited species carry the recessive allele Del⁺, while the green-fruited species carry a δ-carotene gene which is identical or similar in action to the dominant gene Del. The test of allelism that has been carried out proves that the δ-carotene gene from Lycopersicon pennellii Corr. is allelic to gene Del.