Abstract
The aim of this work was to identify Brazilian soybean (Glycine max) genotypes with potential to respond to in vitro culture stimuli for primary somatic embryo induction, secondary embryo proliferation and plant regeneration. Differences among eight tested cultivars were observed at each stage. Two cultivars, IAS-5 and BRSMG 68 Vencedora, were selected for the evaluation of the capacity for embryo differentiation and plant regeneration. These cultivars had high embryo induction frequencies, repetitive embryogenic proliferation, and low precocious embryo germination in the initial experiment. The effect of abscisic acid (ABA) and charcoal addition on plant regeneration was investigated. The addition of ABA to proliferation medium and of ABA and activated charcoal to maturation medium increased embryo differentiation rates, which resulted in a higher number of regenerated plants. The BRSMG 68 Vencedora cultivar was found to have a high potential for embryo induction, embryo proliferation and plant regeneration. The potential of this cultivar for somatic embryogenesis was similar to that observed for cultivar IAS-5, which is currently used for soybean transformation in Brazil. BRSMG 68 Vencedora may be a good alternative genotype for soybean genetic engineering via somatic embryogenesis protocols.
Highlights
The absence of highly efficient regeneration procedures is one of the main limiting factors in gene transfer technology in soybean (Tomlin et al, 2002)
Several studies have shown differences among soybean genotypes in their capacity to respond to the different steps of somatic embryogenesis
The objective of this study was to evaluate Brazilian soybean genotypes for their capacity to respond to embryogenesis induction, embryo proliferation and plant regeneration
Summary
The absence of highly efficient regeneration procedures is one of the main limiting factors in gene transfer technology in soybean (Tomlin et al, 2002). Proliferating somatic embryos are one of the most suitable and convenient targets for soybean genetic manipulation (Sato et al, 1993; Droste et al, 2002; Homrich et al, 2008). Several studies have shown differences among soybean genotypes in their capacity to respond to the different steps of somatic embryogenesis The development of genetically engineered soybean has been limited to a small number of cultivars that respond well to in vitro culture (Tomlin et al, 2002). In Brazil, the IAS-5 and Bragg cultivars have been used in transformation studies (Droste et al, 2002; Homrich et al, 2008)
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