Anther Culture Of Zantedeschia Aethiopica And The Characterization Of Regenerated Plants

Calla Lily,a genus of the Araceae family, is an important pot and cut flower. It has been favoured worldwide for its special flower shape and long flowering phase. However, the research on the breeding of Calla Lily is not conducted in China, which hampers the development of Calla Lily industry.In the study, the donor plants of white Calla Lily (Zantedeschia aethiopica) were grown in an open field in Kunming, china, and were used as donor plants for anther culture. Microspore-derived plants were obtained using anther culture, and the traits of the regenerants were studied. Finaly, application potential of anther culture method on calla lily breeding was evaluated.The main conclusions are as follow:(1) Regenerated plants were obtained via a callus phase. (2) Optimal anther culture medium compositions:Gamborg B5 medium with 8% sucrose, cytokinins (KT) 1.0mg/L,2,4-D 0.5mg/L,0.75% agar, and pH5.8. (3) Effective stress treatment was 4℃for 6 days at the beginning of the culture. (4) Donor plants grown in spring, autumn, and winter were compared for their ability to produce anther calli. The most favorable period was the winter season, resulting in an anther response significantly higher than spring and autumn. (5) The genotype'Hong gan'showed a better ability to produce calli than the genotype'Lv gan'. (6) Amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) analysis of the regenerants showed that haploid as well as diploid plants originated from the microspores. (7) Full-grown microspore-derived plants showed large phenotypic variation. In general, haploids were smaller than double haploid plants (DHs). About 18% part of the DHs reached the larger size than the donor plants, and 34.8% DH lines produced seeds. (8) For micropropagation, the bud in the rhizomatous of white Calla Lily was appropriate explant for the tissue culture, and the efficient medium compositions were:MS medium with 3% sucrose, KT 1.0 mg/L, indole-3-butyric acid (IBA) 0.05 mg/L,0.75% agar, and pH5.8. About 80% buds developed shoots.