Inheritance of male sterility mutations induced in haploid sorghum tissue culture

Summary

A high frequency of male sterile mutants regeneration was shown in callus cultures derived from leaves and panicles of haploid sorghum (Ms_c1, A1 cytoplasm) and a spontaneous autodiploid obtained from this haploid. The cultures derived from the embryos of this autodiploid yielded significantly fewer mutants. Absolutely or partially male sterile mutants appeared among the regenerants or in the progeny of fertile regenerants. In the self-fertilized progenies of partially male sterile mutants and in the hybrids of sterile mutants with autodiploid line (i.e. under one and the same nuclear genome) male sterility mutations were inherited as cytoplasmic. Non-Mendelian segregation of sterile, partially male sterile and fertile plants was observed in these progenies. Partially male sterile plants were characterized by somatic segregation of male sterility genetic factors. In test-crosses with some CMS A1 fertility restorers, mutations were manifested as nuclear recessive while with others as nuclear dominant. These differences are supposed to be the result of interaction of fertility restorer genes of these testers with the novel cytoplasm. Male sterility mutations accompanied with female sterility were inherited as nuclear recessives.