Evaluation of in Vitro Propagated Sugarcane Hybrids for Somaclonal Variation
1987
Lourens, A. G. | Martin, F. A.
A study was conducted from 1982 to 1984 to assess the variability arising from in vitro regeneration and its vegetative transmission in two cultivars of Saccharum officinarum (L.) interspecific hybrids (‘CP 65-357’ and ‘CP 72-356’). Tissue was either regenerated directly from explanted apical meristems or maintained as callus for 6 weeks prior to plantlet regeneration. Several morphological characteristics of each plant were evaluated in the field at maturity in each of 2 years at one location. The frequencies of variants were compared to those found in each original cultivar. The tissue culture process resulted in slightly increased morphological variability in plant cane in both cultivars. This variability was manifested primarily in the form of abnormal plant growth habit, which included number of tillers, stalk length, leaf attitude, and stalk diameter. However, a reversion to the original phenotype characteristic of the parental cultivars was evident in the second year of the experiment, suggesting that the majority of the apparent variation from tissue culture was not under genetic control. Although conformity for plants derived from callus cultures increased n the second year, direct regeneration from explant tissue was more desirable for cloning in CP 65-357, whereas CP 72-356 tissue maintained up to 6 weeks as callus in culture also was suitable for clonal propagation. These results demonstrate that to successfully clone and mass propagate specific sugarcane cultivars for use as planting materials the effect of tissue culture technologies must be examined on a cultivar-by-cultivar basis.
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