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In vitro culture of immature seed for rapid generation advancement in tomato

Euphytica volume 167, pages 23–30 (2009)Cite this article

Abstract

The importance of fast-trackt generation advancement in developing superior germplasm has been recognized in breeding of many crop species. To address this issue in tomato, immature seeds were excised from fruit at different maturity stages and transferred to culture medium. The best culture medium was modified full strength Moorashige–Skoog (MS) salts supplemented with 0.1 mg l−1 IAA, 0.5 mg l−1 IBA, 0.5 mg l−1 GA3 and 2% sucrose. If the excised seeds were able to grow, most showed shoot formation after a week. Seeds extracted as early as 10 days after pollination were successfully cultured provided they were transferred aseptically and without injury. No morphological or physiological changes in regenerated plants and their fruit relative to the parent were detected. Germination from immature seeds of tomato is a simpler alternative to in vitro culture of immature embryos or callus, as it can be undertaken in comparatively less stringent laboratory conditions. Using this approach, five generations can be produced in a year in contrast to a maximum of three generations with conventional methods. This offers an opportunity for rapid generation advancement aimed towards population development when coupled with marker assisted selection in tomato breeding for biotic and abiotic stress tolerance.

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Acknowledgments

We would like to thank Ms. Jean Lin, Mr. Allen Hsu, Dr. Rachael Symonds, and Ms. Julie Chu of AVRDC-The World Vegetable Center for their assistance. We are thankful to Editor Prof Adam J. Lukaszewski for his constructive comments, suggestions and contributions. The research was funded by an Australian Government, DEST, Endeavour Fellowship granted to Dr Surya P. Bhattarai.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Plant and Water Science, Faculty of Science Engineering and Health, CQUniversity, Rockhampton, QLD, 4702, Australia

    Surya P. Bhattarai & David J. Midmore

  2. Biotechnology and Molecular Breeding Unit, AVRDC-The World Vegetable Centre, P.O. Box 42, Shanhua, Tainan, 74199, Taiwan, ROC

    Robert C. de la Pena & Kadirvel Palchamy

Authors
  1. Surya P. Bhattarai
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  2. Robert C. de la Pena
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  3. David J. Midmore
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  4. Kadirvel Palchamy
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Correspondence to Surya P. Bhattarai.

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Bhattarai, S.P., de la Pena, R.C., Midmore, D.J. et al. In vitro culture of immature seed for rapid generation advancement in tomato. Euphytica 167, 23–30 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10681-008-9855-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10681-008-9855-6

Keywords

  • Embryo culture
  • Tomato, immature fruit
  • Immature seed culture
  • Rapid generation advancement