In Vitro Micropropagation of Maintainer White Head Cabbage Lines Using Cotyledon and Hypocotyl Explants

Abstract

Brassica species are the most widely cultivated vegetable crops and improvement programs started in the last thirty years in Turkey. Hybrid seed production is very difficult for Brassica vegetable species. Because the production of a new F1 hybrid cultivar needs a male sterile line (A), maintainer line (B), and also a male line (C). Biotechnological methods provide an excellent opportunity for new F1 hybrid cultivar improvement via in vitro maintenance of the breeding lines. Thus, in vitro propagation possibilities of Matsunami F1 cultivar and 3 white head cabbage maintainer pure lines were examined using hypocotyl and cotyledon explants. The most successful results were obtained from MS + 2 mg/l and 4 mg/l BAP combinations. Matsunami F1 was prominent in terms of proliferation rate. Root formation was found to be considerably high in all genotypes. The use of in vitro propagation techniques is expected to provide significant benefits in head cabbage breeding programs.