GENETIC IMPROVEMENT IN POMEGRANATE (Punica granatum) THROUGH INDUCED MUTAGENESIS
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Date
2024-02-04
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UHF Nauni
Abstract
The contemporary study entitled “Genetic improvement in pomegranate (Punica
granatum) through induced mutagenesis” was carried out during 2021-2022 at Department of Fruit
Science, Dr YS Parmar University of Horticulture & Forestry, Nauni, Solan. The three cultivars viz.,
Kandhari Kabuli, Bhagwa and Daru were treated with physical mutagen (gamma rays) at doses of 0,
6, 9, 12, 15, 18, 21, 24 kR with the objective of inducing variability. The observations were recorded
at different intervals of time after sowing in the polyhouse and after transplanting in the field
conditions (20, 30 and 40 days after sowing and 70 days after transplanting, subsequently). The
germination percentage, survival percentage and LD50 doses were calculated for all the three cultivars.
Mutant seedlings from different concentrations of gamma rays were evaluated for morphological,
biochemical and molecular characteristics. The morphological changes were observed both under
polyhouse and field conditions. The LD50 dose for cvs. Kandhari Kabuli, Bhagwa and Daru were
15.26 kR, 15.08 kR, and 13.74 kR, correspondingly. Morphological characterization was done on the
basis of the UPOV descriptor for the traits; plant: growth habit, plant: intensity of grey colour of main
branches, shoot length (cm), young shoot: predominant number of leaves per node, leaf blade: length
(cm), leaf blade: width (cm), leaf blade: ratio length/width, Leaf blade: shape of apex excluding tip;
leaf blade: intensity of green colour; petiole: length; petiole: anthocyanin colouration. The disease
severity was also screened for bacterial blight under field conditions, where, cv. Daru recorded the
minimum disease severity percentage (6.57%) corresponding to control, followed by cv. Bhagwa
(9.03%) and cv. Kandhari Kabuli (22.97%) at 9 kR. The molecular characterization was employed
using 26 SSR markers to check the variability within the mutagenized seedlings with the Polymorphic
Information Content (PIC), the effective multiple ratio (EMR) and the marker index (MI) aligned
from 0.08 to 0.58; 0.00 to 0.17 and 0.00 to 0.06, sequentially. From the present study gamma rays
induced variability for morphological traits will serve as a potential breeding material for future use.