Under what circumstances can process-based simulation models link genotype to phenotype for complex traits? Case-study of fruit and grain quality traits

Detailed information has arisen from research at gene and cell levels, but it is still incomplete in the context of a quantitative understanding of whole plant physiology. Because of their integrative nature, process-based simulation models can help to bridge the gap between genotype and phenotype and assist in deconvoluting genotype-by-environment (GxE) interactions for complex traits. Indeed, GxE interactions are emergent properties of simulation models, i.e. unexpected properties generated by complex interconnections between subsystem components and biological processes. They co-occur in the system with synergistic or antagonistic effects. In this work, different kinds of GxE interactions are illustrated. Approaches to link model parameters to genes or quantitative trait loci (QTL) are briefly reviewed. Then the analysis of GxE interactions through simulation models is illustrated with an integrated model simulation of peach (Prunus persica (L.) Batsch) fruit mass and sweetness, and with a model of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) grain yield and protein concentration. This paper suggests that the management of complex traits such as fruit and grain quality may become possible, thanks to the increasing knowledge concerning the genetic and environmental regulation of organ size and composition and to the development of models simulating the complex aspects of metabolism and biophysical behaviours at the plant and organ levels.