FR database 1.0: A resource focused on fruit development and ripening

Abstract

Fruits form unique growing period in the life cycle of higher plants. They provide essential nutrients and have beneficial effects on human health. Characterizing the genes involved in fruit development and ripening is fundamental to understanding the biological process and improving horticultural crops. Although, numerous genes that have been characterized are participated in regulating fruit development and ripening at different stages, no dedicated bioinformatic resource for fruit development and ripening is available. In this study, we have developed such a database, FR database 1.0, using manual curation from 38 423 articles published before 1 April 2014, and integrating protein interactomes and several transcriptome datasets. It provides detailed information for 904 genes derived from 53 organisms reported to participate in fleshy fruit development and ripening. Genes from climacteric and non-climacteric fruits are also annotated, with several interesting Gene Ontology (GO) terms being enriched for these two gene sets and seven ethylene-related GO terms found only in the climacteric fruit group. Furthermore, protein-protein interaction analysis by integrating information from FR database presents the possible function network that affects fleshy fruit size formation. Collectively, FR database will be a valuable platform for comprehensive understanding and future experiments in fruit biology.