Question

Which one of the following tissue culture approaches is most appropriate for production of double haploid plants?

• A. Protoplast fusion
• B. Embryo rescue
• C. Anther culture
• D. Meristem culture

Hint:

Anther culture is a powerful tool in plant breeding for generating double haploid plants, which are genetically uniform and homozygous, making them ideal for further breeding.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is C

Step 1: Understand the concept of double haploid plants.
Double haploid plants are developed from a haploid cell (containing a single set of chromosomes) that undergoes chromosome doubling to become diploid. These plants are genetically homozygous and are highly valuable in plant breeding and genetic studies.

Step 2: Evaluate the tissue culture approaches.

• Protoplast fusion: Involves combining protoplasts from different species to create hybrids. It is primarily used for somatic hybridization, not for generating double haploids.
• Embryo rescue: Saves embryos from aborting in incompatible crosses. While useful in breeding, it is not typically used for double haploid production.
• Anther culture: The preferred method for producing double haploids. Anthers are cultured to induce the formation of haploid embryos from microspores (pollen grains), which are then treated (e.g., with colchicine) to double their chromosomes and form homozygous diploid plants.
• Meristem culture: Used to propagate genetically identical plants (clones), not suitable for double haploid development.

Step 3: Conclusion.
The most suitable approach for producing double haploid plants is Anther culture.