Haploid (n) and doubled haploid (DH) plants were developed in anther culture of sweet pepper (Capsicum annuum L.). Regenerants were analyzed by flow cytometry for haploid (n = 12) and spontaneous doubled haploid (2n = 24) genomes. Haploid plants were forwarded to colchicine-treatment for induced doubled haploid (2n•) plant production. Molecular polymorphism of anther donor plants (2n), the haploid regenerants (n), the spontaneous (2n) and induced (2n•)-DH plants were analysed by RAPD-, SSR-and ISSR-PCR. The analysis of anther-donor plants compared to DH-descendents showed an unexpectedly wide range of molecular polymorphism. Our results suggest that genetic changes occurring during meiotic recombination is higher than those of occurring during colchicine-induced genomic duplication.
1.IntroductionIn general, cultures of anther, pollen, ovary, and ovule produce haploid (n) regenerants as fixed gametoclonal variants resulted from meiosis. The two processes of meiotic recombination, the crossing over between homologous pairs of maternal and paternal chromosomes, and the random assortment of chromosomes generate genetically different haploid gametes. In the case of pepper (2n = 24) the number of possible gametes as a result of random assortment of chromosomes is equal to 2 n = 2 12 = 4.096. This number is higher considering the numbers of crossing over occurring during the first meiotic cell division. By the application of anther culture, as in the present study, male gametoclonal pepper variants could be selected with new genomic constitutions (Dumas de Vaulx et al., 1981, Mitykó et al., 1995, Fári, 1986, Gémesné et al., 1998, Gyulai et al., 2000. Anther-culture-derived DH-lines are the most advanced inbreds in pepper breeding for hybrid development, new cultivar release with new fruit shape, size, colour etc., and for resistance especially to viruses such as tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) and to bacteria Xantomonas vesicatoria. The significance of the DH technique in breeding is, first, the ability to develop monoploid plants with one set of chromosomes, second, to produce homozygous, doubled haploid (DH) pure lines, and third, to reveal meiotic recombinants with unique genome constitutions (Caranta et al., 1996). The aim of the study presented was to select new meiotic recombinants of anther culture origin with a final aim of new cultivar release.
Materials and methods
Anther cultureAnthers were excised from flower buds of different pepper lines at the uninucleate microspore stage. Fifteen anthers per petridish, 6 cm in diameter, were excised and laid onto a nutritive medium of Dumas de Vaulx et al. (1981). Regenerated (DH-R 1 ) plants were potted and grown in greenhouses for R 2 -seed production prior to flow cytometric analysis.