Abstract
Rhizobium rhizogenes infects and transforms a wide range of plant species. It thereby introduces new genes located on transfer-DNA of the root inducing plasmid (pRi) into the plant genome and one of its abilities is to alter the host root system. Explants from pRi transformed roots from Sinningia speciosa were regenerated to create naturally transgenic Ri lines. The presence of rol and aux genes in the Ri lines was linked with altered growth characteristics: shorter peduncles, wrinkled leaves, delayed flowering and enhanced root growth. The potential of Ri lines for breeding was evaluated through consecutive backcrossing with the original host genotype. The progeny of reciprocal crosses showed non-Mendelian inheritance suggesting partial transmission of the of the aux and rol genes. The typical Ri phenotype observed in the primary Ri line was partially inherited. These results revealed that the Ri phenotype is a complex trait influenced by the genetic background of the Ri line.
Highlights
The florist’s gloxinia (Sinningia speciosa Baill.) is a tuberous herbaceous perennial, belonging to the family Gesneriaceae and native to South America (Chautems et al, 2000; Weber, 2004)
We describe a co-cultivation and regeneration protocol for S. speciosa, which includes testing root formation efficiency of different explant types, genotypes and rhizogenic strains
A co-cultivation protocol for S. speciosa was developed based on the optimization of three variables: S. speciosa genotype, rhizogenic strain and the explant type
Summary
The florist’s gloxinia (Sinningia speciosa Baill.) is a tuberous herbaceous perennial, belonging to the family Gesneriaceae and native to South America (Chautems et al, 2000; Weber, 2004). The attractive foliage and colorful flowers make Sinningia widely appreciated as an ornamental pot plant for indoor use (Li et al, 2013). The florist’s gloxinia has been the subject of a long plant domestication and breeding process (Dong et al, 2018). Compact S. speciosa plants are obtained by a combination of cultivation management practices, plant breeding and/or the application of plant growth retardants (Casanova et al, 2005; Rademacher, 2015; Pérez de la Torre et al, 2018). Natural transformation of plants with wild type rhizogenic agrobacteria is a technique, already applied for several ornamental plant species, that resulted in plants with a more compact growth habit (Desmet et al, 2020)
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