Phenotypic and Genotypic Analysis of Newly Obtained Interspecific Hybrids in the Campanula Genus

Abstract

Interspecific hybridisation creates new phenotypes within several ornamental plant species including the Campanula genus. We have employed phenotypic and genotypic methods to analyse and evaluate interspecific hybridisation among cultivars of four Campanula species, i.e. C. cochleariifolia, C. isophylla, C. medium and C. formanekiana. Hybrids were analysed using amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP), flow cytometry and biometrical measurements. Results of correlation matrices demonstrated heterogeneous phenotypes for the parental species, which confirmed our basic premise for new phenotypes of interspecific hybrids. AFLP assays confirmed the hybridity and identified self-pollinated plants. Limitation of flow cytometry analysis detection was observed while detecting the hybridity status of two closely related parents, e.g. C. cochleariiafolia × C. isophylla. Phenotypic characteristics such as shoot habitus and flower colour were strongly influenced by one of the parental species in most crosses. Rooting analysis revealed that inferior rooting quality occurred more often in interspecific hybrids than in the parental species. Only interspecific hybrid lines of C. formanekiana ‘White’ × C. medium ‘Pink’ showed a high rooting level. Phenotype analyses demonstrated a separation from the interspecific hybrid lines of C. formanekiana ‘White’ × C. medium ‘Pink’ to the other clustered hybrids of C. formanekiana and C. medium. In our study we demonstrated that the use of correlation matrices is a suitable tool for identifying suitable cross material. This study presents a comprehensive overview for analysing newly obtained interspecific hybrids. The chosen methods can be used as guidance for analyses for further interspecific hybrids in Campanula, as well as in other ornamental species.

Assessment of Genetic Relationships between Streptocarpus x hybridus V. Parents and F1 Progenies Using SRAP Markers and FT-IR Spectroscopy

“…The characterization of hybrids was generally based on morphological traits [3]. Combining conventional selection with marker-assisted selection (MAS) can enable the identification and characterization of the hybrids more precisely and effectively [4].…”

Molecular and phytochemical characterization of F1 Streptocarpus hybrids and antioxidant potential of their flower extracts

“…Breeding programs that combine morphological descriptors with molecular markers could enable a more precise and effective characterization of the hybrids (Hârţa et al, 2020). In many ornamental plants, several types of molecular markers, such as random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD), sequence-related amplified polymorphism (SRAP), inter simple sequence repeat (ISSR), restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP), amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) and microsatellites (SSRs), have been used successfully to evaluate the genetic relationships between hybrids and their genitors (Abe et al, 2002;Rout and Mohapatra, 2006;Conceição et al, 2011;Röper et al, 2015;Ramzan et al, 2018, Aros et al, 2019. Previous reports show that among the PCR-based molecular markers, RAPD has proven to be a reliable, low-cost technique for hybrid identification and genetic relationship assessment in new varieties of plants (Kobayashi et al, 1996a;Yulita and Mansur, 2012;Pharmawati and Macfarlane, 2013;de Oliveira Belo et al, 2018).…”