<Emphasis Type='Italic'>In Vitro<Emphasis> Haploid Production in Higher Plants Volume 4 - Cereals

Since the beginning of agricultural production, there has been a continuous effort to grow more and better quality food to feed ever increasing popula­ tions. Both improved cultural practices and improved crop plants have allowed us to divert more human resources to non-agricultural activities while still increasing agricultural production. Malthusian population predictions continue to alarm agricultural researchers, especially plant breeders, to seek new technologies that will continue to allow us to produce more and better food by fewer people on less land. Both improvement of existing cultivars and development of new high-yielding cultivars are common goals for breeders of all crops. In vitro haploid production is among the new technologies that show great promise toward the goal of increasing crop yields by making similar germplasm available for many crops that was used to implement one of the greatest plant breeding success stories of this century, i. e. , the development of hybrid maize by crosses of inbred lines. One of the main applications of anther culture has been to produce diploid homozygous pure lines in a single generation, thus saving many generations of backcrossing to reach homozygosity by traditional means or in crops where self-pollination is not possible. Because doubled haploids are equivalent to inbred lines, their value has been appreciated by plant breeders for decades. The search for natural haploids and methods to induce them has been ongoing since the beginning of the 20th century. "This fifth and final volume on In Vitro Haploid Production in Higher Plants comprises 13 chapters and is divided into three sections. Most chapters are crop specific and each chapter contains an introduction about the selected plant, the techniques (anther culture, microspore culture, ovary/ovule culture) that have been successfully used for haploid production, the factors that have influenced the success of these techniques, the identification and genetic characterization of haploid regenerants, the application of haploids in breeding, and a brief conclusion on the potential of haploid breeding in the specific crop. The chapters contained in Section 1 focus on selected oil crops, including linseed (Linum usitatissimum), sunflower (Helianthus annuus) and niger (Guizotia abyssinica). Section 2 deals with ornamental plants including (Petunia, lily (Lilium spp.), tulip (Tulipa spp.), and Camellia japonica). The final Section 3 comprises miscellaneous plants including various fruit, vegetable, or specialty crops (asparagus (Asparagus officinalis), tobacco (Nicotiana spp.), cotton (Gossypium spp.), gynogenic haploids in angiosperms, Citrus, tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum), and interspecific somatic hybrids of potato (Solanum brevidens and S. tuberosum)). Some chapters also include a discussion of the potential of protoplast manipulations and genetic transformation of the particular crop under discussion."--Page xiii This fourth volume on In Vitro Haploid Production in Higher Plants comprises 11 chapters on cereal haploid production. All chapters are crop specific and each chapter contains an introduction about the selected plant, the techniques (anther culture, microspore culture, ovary/ovule culture) that have been successfully used for haploid production, the factors that have influenced the success of these techniques, the identification and genetic characterization of haploid regenerants, the application of haploids in breeding, and a brief conclusion on the potential of haploid breeding in the specific crop. The chapters contained review haploidy in cereal crops including rice (Oryza sativa), maize (Zea mays), wheat (Triticum aestivum), barley (Hordeum vulgare), triticale, ryegrass (Lolium spp.), sorghum (Sorghum bicolor), buckwheat (Fagopyrum esculentum), pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum), rye (Secale cereale) and oat (Avena sativa). Some chapters also include a discussion of the potential of protoplast manipulations and genetic transformation of the particular crop under discussion Front Matter....Pages i-xiv Haploidy in rice....Pages 1-35 In vitro haploid production in maize....Pages 37-71 In vitro induced haploids in wheat....Pages 73-97 Haploidy in barley....Pages 99-115 Haploidy in triticale....Pages 117-131 Haploidy in ryegrass....Pages 133-147 Haploidy in sorghum....Pages 149-161 Haploid induction in buckwheat ( Fagopyrum esculentum Moench)....Pages 163-170 Haploidy in pearl millet [ Pennisetum glaucum (L.) R. Br.]....Pages 171-179 Haploidy in rye....Pages 181-204 Oat haploids from anther culture and from wide hybridizations....Pages 205-221 Back Matter....Pages 223-236