Effects of the duration of a low-temperature pretreatment and hormone concentrations on anther cultures and the regeneration of awnless triticale

Abstract

Compared to traditional breeding methods, anther culture method is an effective method for quickly obtaining homozygotes within one generation. The method of cultivating double haploid plants with the anthers of awnless triticale was studied and optimized. Results Young awnless triticale spikes were pretreated at 4°C for 5, 10, 15, 20, or 25 days, and the anthers were cultured on four CHB media with varying hormone concentrations. The callus induction rate (CIR) was highest (28.54%) for A3B3 (anthers pretreated for 15 days and CHB medium containing 1.5 mg/L 2,4-D and 1.5 mg/L KT). The green plantlet differentiation frequency (DFG) was highest (30.20%) for A5B1 (25-days pretreatment and CHB medium containing 0.5 mg/L 2,4-D and 0.5 mg/L KT). The green plantlet production (PPG) was highest (7.98%) for A2B1 (10-days + 0.5 mg/L 2,4-D + 0.5 mg/L KT). The success rate of chromosome doubling for the regenerated green plantlets was 52.8%. Appropriately decreasing the chromosome doubling time may increase the survival rate of the regenerated plants. Ten of the nineteen doubled haploid plants had tip and side awns shorter than 5 mm, implying they may be used for cultivating awnless triticale. Conclusion The anther culture technology of triticale was optimized in this paper, which made it possible to rapidly breed homozygous varieties of awnless triticale, and also accelerated the breeding program of new varieties of awnless triticale.