Male Sterile Lines of Zinnia elegans and Their Cytological Observations

Abstract

In order to find out a new pathway for utilizing heterosis of Zinnia elegans and accelerate breeding process, the mechanism of anther development of a male sterile line was explored. Backcross, sibmating, selfing of fertile plants and testcross with inbred lines were analyzed and identified in the field, and cytology was observed. Recessive nucleus male sterile line AH209AB capable of being a maintainer was obtained by successive backcrosses with male sterile plants and fertile F1 plants as male parents. Cytological and anatomical studies indicated that: (1) The wall of normal anther was constituted of four layers of cells such as epidermis, powder chamber wall, middle level and tapetum cells. The process in meiosis of pollen mother cell in Zinnia elegans was normal and cytoplasm divided simultanously. Mature pollen grain was tricellular type. (2) The petal of male sterile plant degraded as a thread-like structure, the stamens were villiform in appearance and no pollens were formed. The result showed that the anther of male sterile plant no longer proceed to differentiate spore mother cell and the pollen sac after the formation of the tissue of sporogenous cells, there was no evident boundary between tapetum cell, middle lamella and inner wall of PMC, tapetal cells did not develop from the very beginning. So the abortion type was completely structural male sterility. The male sterile line belongs to non-sporange male sterile type and is of great use in F1 seeds production.