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Nutritional control of the frequency of MNNG-induced true branching habit in Anabaena doliolum

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Summary

MNNG survival and mutagenesis were studied in Anabaena doliolum Bharadwaja. The survival curves of germinating spores were exponential while those of resting spores and filament-fragments were sigmoidal. Blue mutants with much higher phycocyanin contents than the parent were recovered in varying frequencies; the frequency (1.1%) was the highest with 2 mg/ml MNNG for 15 min. Some of the blue mutants sporulated normally; while others did not. A nonsporulating blue mutant (M16) showed branched filaments in liquid cultures. In nitrogen free medium. M16 had a high frequency (70%) of branched filaments during the early phase of growth. In some filaments, the branch arose from a heterocyst showing three polar nodules. There was no other difference between the parent and the mutant in cell morphology and cellular differentiation. High light intensity adversely affected phycocyanin and chlorophyll a pigments and nitrogen fixation in the mutant. Frequency of mutant branched character appears to beta factor of inorganic nitrogen nutrition.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Genetics and Plant Breeding, Banaras Hindu University, 221005, Varanasi, India

    Banshi Dhar

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  1. Banshi Dhar
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Communicated by H. Böhme

Dedicated to the memory of my revered teacher the late Prof. R. N. Singh

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Dhar, B. Nutritional control of the frequency of MNNG-induced true branching habit in Anabaena doliolum . Molec. gen. Genet. 173, 177–181 (1979). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00330308

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00330308

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