Pawpaw: An Underutilized Tree with Potential

Pawpaw [Asimina triloba (L.) Dunal] is an endemic North American tree that is gaining commercial interest because it produces desirable, nutritious fruit for human consumption. The plant evolved in the forest understory and can grow well in shaded and sunny environments. As a native tree, there are few arthropod pests or diseases, thus, the trees require few pesticide inputs. The acetogenins synthesized by the tree can be used as natural pesticides or in cancer therapy treatment. Pawpaw is primarily propagated by seed in nurseries, and cultivars are grafted via the whip-and-tongue and chip bud methods. However, there are several challenges that limit wider adoption of pawpaw production in North America including the lack of an adequate tissue culture protocol for clonal propagation, poor understanding of fruit physiology, and lack of rootstocks for commercial production. Modern biotechnology serves as viable option for overcoming these challenges and accelerating the development of pawpaw for commercial production.