Chimerism and genetic diversity within the cultivar group of pinots

Three clones of Vitis vinifera cv. pinot gris were analysed at 50 microsatellite loci to assess the presence of intra-varietal genetic variability. Two clones revealed a polymorphism expressed by the presence of three alleles at 5 loci instead of the two expected for a diploid species. By sequencing the three alleles amplified at two loci, we confirm that they correspond to different allelic states of the same locus but differ in their number of repeat units. Such tri-allelic profiles could reveal periclinal chimeras in which the two cell layers of the apical meristem are genetically different. For two clones, this periclinal chimeric state has been deduced from the comparison of the genoty…