Almond (Prunus dulcis (Mill.) D. A. Webb) is a traditional culture in Portugal, which gained a renewed interest due to the installation of new orchards. Grafting remains the main method used for almond propagation. The successful establishment of a graft union between two parts (scion and rootstock) requires auxins, which are involved in wound response and vascular regeneration. This work aimed at the quantification and immunolocalization of indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) in almond micrografts before micrografting (T0) and 21 days after micrografting (T2). The results are a step forward to understand of how auxin is involved in graft compatibility in almond.

Southern Portugal has high natural variability of Cynara cardunculus L. (Cc) at biochemical and morphological levels, creating a need for genetic diversity studies. Cc represents a natural source of sesquiterpene lactones (SL), particularly cynaropicrin. Previously, 175 wild Cc individuals (generation F0) from different geographical locations in the Alentejo region were identified, collected and chemically and genetically characterized. To improve the biotechnological benefits of the cardoon, a transcriptomic analysis based on the SL chemical profile is ongoing to select the best genotypes for cynaropicrin production. This knowledge is crucial for identifying molecular markers related to characteristics of interest for future cardoon breeding programs.

In recent years, almond culture has increased in Portugal with the introduction of new orchards neglecting the traditional varieties. Micrografting, grafting in in vitro conditions, is a technique that has been established for commercial almond trees, but no studies have been described with Portuguese varieties. In this work, an efficient protocol for almond micrografting with traditional almond trees was established. The effect of plant growth regulators (BAP and IBA) and activated charcoal on culture medium were also evaluated during micrografting assays. Furthermore, the effect of auxin IBA on root induction was analysed during rooting assays.

In order to identify specific candidate genes linked to secondary growth, a transcriptomic analysis of single cells, isolated by laser microdissection technology, of cork oak was performed. Thus, an optimized protocol for single-cell isolation laser microdissection of phellogen, lenticels and xylem was successfully achieved, followed by RNA isolation, cDNA library preparation and RNA sequencing. Differential expression and GO term analysis clearly reveal active enzyme players on lignin and suberin critical point pathways. The scRNA-Seq analysis contributed to increasing the knowledge about potential genes associated with the development processes of secondary growth in cork oak.