Tomato is an excellent model to study variation in fruit morphology and development. While relatively little variation exists between wild relatives, within cultivated tomato the morphological variation is extensive and largely attributable to the continued selection for fruit characters. Changes in shape typically occur during growth and maturation of the ovary and/or fruit. Therefore, the identification of genes and pathways controlling changes in fruit morphology may allow identification of conserved developmental pathways regulating ovary and fruit formation in many if not all angiosperm species.

This database hosts a large collection of tomato varieties that differ in shape and size. The molecular basis of shape variation in a particular tomato variety is indicated (when known) as well as the phenotypic fruit parameters of each variety which we measured using the Tomato Analyzer .

Information can also be found about the landmark stages of flower and fruit development in the reference tomato, S. pimpinellifolium LA1589 and the effect of each shape locus in this background.

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