Comparison of the effect of colchicine and nitrous oxide (N2O) on the ploidy of Tagetes erecta

H.K. Vargas Merino, E. Tapia-Campos, J.M. Rodríguez-Dominguez, R. Barba-González
Plant polyploidization is a crucial technique in plant breeding, as it enables the production of crops with enhanced characteristics. Colchicine is commonly used to induce polyploidy, but it has a low rate of effectiveness and inconsistent results. Nitrous oxide serves as an alternative to colchicine since it also acts as a spindle inhibitor. The objective of the study was to investigate and compare the effect of nitrous oxide and colchicine in inducing polyploidy in Tagetes erecta using two types of explants: seeds and axillary buds. The seeds were disinfected and placed in a ½MS medium. Upon germination, half of the seeds were subjected to nitrous oxide treatment, while the other half were allowed to grow normally. The axillary buds were sectioned and placed in ½MS medium, each fragment containing 1 or 2 axillary buds. The germinating seeds and the stem fragments were treated at 6 atmospheres in a pressure chamber for 24, 48, and 72 h. Additionally, colchicine treatments were conducted at concentrations of 0.1 and 0.2% for 2, 4, and 6 h. The results showed that the survival rate was 100% in the seed treatments with nitrous oxide, while it was only 40% in the treatments with colchicine. In the treatments with nitrous oxide in axillary buds, seedlings were regenerated by 100%. Among the plants obtained with nitrous oxide treatments, polyploid plants have been identified. The study suggests that nitrous oxide is a promising alternative to colchicine for inducing polyploidy in plants.
Vargas Merino, H.K., Tapia-Campos, E., Rodríguez-Dominguez, J.M. and Barba-González, R. (2023). Comparison of the effect of colchicine and nitrous oxide (N2O) on the ploidy of Tagetes erecta. Acta Hortic. 1383, 181-186
DOI: 10.17660/ActaHortic.2023.1383.21
https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.2023.1383.21
colchicine, polyploidization, somatic
English

Acta Horticulturae