Effects of gamma irradiation on morphological changes in Porang (Amorphophallus muelleri Blume)

Abstract

Porang is agricultural plant that become important in the recent years. However, harnessing them through traditional genetic breeding is time-consuming and expensive. Inducing mutagenesis may be a short-time option for its genetic improvement. Therefore, the aim of this reserach is to determine the effect of gamma irradiation in the morphological changes of Porang. This research used completely randomized design (CRD) consisted of 6 levels of radiation including 0 Gray, 2 Gray, 4 Gray, 6 Gray, 8 Gray and 10 Gray. All treatments were replicated 4 times to account for statistical variability. The 30 days after planting of explants were then exposed to varying doses of gamma irradiation using a gamma cobalt-60 at Badan Tenaga Nuklir Nasional (BATAN) Jakarta Indonesia. Porang height, total shoot and leaves, width and length of leaves were characterized after irradiation. Quantitative data were analyzed by using Anova one way and duncan on 5% significance level. Level irradiation of 2 Gray affected the number of shoots and leaves, plant height, width and length of leaves and leaf morphology and colour. Gamma radiation has succeeded in increasing the agricultural value of porang and producing porang with higher genetic diversity than wildtypes.