Carolina Guercio

Dr. Carolina Guercio


Research Focus & Metrics

Academic Career Length

5Years (2022-Present)

(Calculated once Scilit publication data is synced: current year − year of first publication + 1)

Representative Publications

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20 August 2022 in Agronomy
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
PDF file
CMChristophe Montagnon
Christophe Montagnon
VRVeronica Rossi
Veronica Rossi
CGCarolina Guercio
Carolina Guercio
FSFaris Sheibani
Faris Sheibani
While Ethiopia and South Sudan are the native habitats for Coffea arabica, Yemen is considered an important domestication center for this coffee species as most Arabica coffee grown around the world can be traced back to Yemen. Furthermore, climatic conditions in Yemen are hot and extremely dry. As such, Yemeni coffee trees likely have genetic merits with respect to climate resilience. However, until recently, very little was known about the genetic landscape of Yemeni coffee. The Yemeni coffee sector identifies coffee trees according to numerous vernacular names such as Udaini, Tufahi or Dawairi. However, the geographical landscape of these names and their correlation with the genetic background of the coffee trees have never been explored. In this study, we investigated the geographic occurrence of vernacular names in 148 coffee farms across the main coffee areas of Yemen. Then, we used microsatellite markers to genotype 88 coffee trees whose vernacular name was ascertained by farmers. We find a clear geographical pattern for the use of vernacular coffee names. However, the vernacular names showed no significant association with genetics. Our results support the need for a robust description of different coffee types in Yemen based on their genetic background for the benefit of Yemeni farmers.