Combination of Somaclonal Variation and Mutagenesis for Crop Improvement
<p>Mutation-based<br />plant improvement, which changes one or a few specific<br />traits of a cultivar, can contribute to crop improvement.<br />Tissue culture increases the efficiency of mutagenic<br />treatment to induce variations. In vitro culture in<br />combination with induced mutation can speed up the<br />breeding program by generating variability, followed by<br />selection and multiplication of the desired genotypes. In<br />many vegetative propagated crops, mutation induction in<br />combination with in vitro culture techniques can be the<br />most effective method for plant improvement. In seed<br />propagated species, the application of mutation coupled<br />with doubled haploid systems seems to be highly promising<br />in crop improvement. This approach speeds up the breeding<br />program through generation of variability followed by<br />selection of homozygousity and rapid multiplication of<br />desired genotypes.</p>