Induced mutations for aluminum tolerance after N-methyl- N-nitrosourea treatment of fertilized egg cells in rice ( Oryza sativa L.)

Abstract

MNU applied to fertilized egg cells induced an increased range of variation for Al tolerance in M 2. For the M 3 the induced variability in M 2 was heritable; 50 variants expressed different degrees of tolerance for Al toxicity, some of which did not show any growth inhibition even at 30 ppm Al. Tolerance for Al toxicity and longer root development were interrelated. Mutagenesis of fertilized egg cells appears to be useful for increasing genetic variability for Al tolerance in rice.