Obtaining new germplasm in Cenchrus ciliaris L. through induced-mutation and in vitro selection

LÓPEZ COLOMBA, E.; PRINA, A.; GRIFFA, S.; RIBOTTA, A.N.; CARLONI, E.; TOMASSINO, E.; LUNA, C.; BIDERBOST, E.; GRUNBERG, K.

PHYTON - INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL BOTANY BA ARGENTINA

FUNDACION ROMULO RAGGIO

Lugar: Buenos Aires; Año: 2011 vol. 80 p. 59 - 64

0031-9457

Cenchrus ciliaris L., a forage grass of wide distribution in the north-west of Argentina, is a tetraploid (4x = 36) and obligate apomictic species. One way of obtaining novel germplasm is by inducedmutations. In this work, physical and chemical mutations are combined with in vitro selection procedures seeking for new germplasm,with emphasis on salinity and drought tolerance. Mature seeds of Cenchrus ciliaris L. cv Biloela were subjected to treatments with X rays (400 Gy) and ethyl methanesulphonate (EMS) water solution (5.5 mM for 24 h). To perform in vitro selection, after 7 days of EMS or X rays treatments, germinated seeds were transferred to tubes containing Murashige and Skoog medium supplemented with NaCl or mannitol to simulate salinity and drought conditions, respectively. Fifty-four selected plants were isolated which tolerated 200 mM NaCl and 100 mM mannitol. Both mutagenic agents exhibitedsimilar percentages of induced genetic variation measured through RAPD polymorphisms. This work demonstrated that geneticvariability can be generated in Cenchrus ciliaris L. using mutagenicagents and in vitro selection.