Molecular evidence of true-to-type propagation of a 3-year-old Norway spruce through somatic embryogenesis

• Published in: Planta Vol. 213; no. 5; pp. 828 - 832
• Main Authors: Harvengt, Luc, Trontin, Jean-François, Reymond, Isabelle, Canlet, Francis, Paques, Marc
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin Springer-Verlag 01.09.2001; Springer
• Subjects: Agronomy. Soil science and plant productions; Biological and medical sciences; Biotechnology; Cloning, Molecular; Conformity; Cotyledons; Culture Techniques; DNA; Embryos; Eukaryotic cell cultures; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; General agronomy. Plant production; In vitro propagation: entire plant regeneration from tissues and cell cultures; Methods. Procedures. Technologies; Microsatellites; Phenotype; Picea - embryology; Picea - genetics; Picea - growth & development; Plant cells and fungal cells; Plant products; Plants; Polymerase Chain Reaction; RAPID COMMUNICATION; Seeds - genetics; Seeds - growth & development; Somaclonal variation; Somatic embryogenesis; Somatic embryos; Trees - embryology; Trees - genetics; Trees - growth & development; Vegetative propagation. Micropropagation; Vegetative propagation. Sowing and planting. Harvesting; Embryonic development; Genetic variability; Genetic marker; Micropropagation; Somaclonal variation; Somatic embryo; Regeneration; Microsatellite DNA; Softwood forest tree; Gymnospermae; Coniferales; Spermatophyta; Intraspecific comparison; Picea abies
• ISSN: 0032-0935; 1432-2048
• DOI: 10.1007/s004250100628

Some progress has recently been made in establishing a system enabling somatic embryos to be initiated from old elite trees. We report here the first results demonstrating the molecular conformity of somatic embryos initiated from increasingly old Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) Karst.), as indicated by an analysis of six nuclear microsatellites that showed an extremely high tendency to mutate during in vitro culture. No allelic difference was detected at these loci among plants regenerated from somatic embryos or between the former and mother plants. Moreover, phenotypical data acquired on the same 3- to 9-year-old plants growing in the field sampled for molecular analyses were totally in accord with the results on molecular conformity.