Indian Society of Genetics & Plant Breeding

Induced polygenic variability in M2 generation and its relationship with production of high-yielding mutants in finger millet

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Seeds of two finger millet varieties, VR 708 and GPU 26
were treated with three doses each of gamma rays (150,
300 and 450 Gy), ethyl methane sulphonate (0.15, 0.30 and
0.45%) and nitroso guanidine (0.015, 0.030 and 0.045%) in
addition to two combination treatments of gamma rays
300 Gy + EMS 0.30% and gamma rays 300 Gy + NG 0.030%.
The M
1 generation was harvested as treatment bulk and
the M
2 to M4 generations were raised. In M2 generation,
most treatment populations exhibited reduction in
population mean and increase in population variance for
all the six traits studied and the magnitude of such
changes varied with mutagens, their doses and the variety.
In general, greater shift in mean and variance was
observed in treatments with higher doses of NG and EMS
in case of VR 708 and higher doses of NG and combination
treatments in case of GPU 26. Most mutagen treated
populations showed wider range of variation than the
parent variety and the variation was in both directions.
Genetic advance estimates showed that selection in many
M
2 treatment populations would be effective in bringing
about improvement in yield/plant and its direct
components like tillers/plant, fingers/ear and finger length.
Following selection among M2 plants and M3 progenies
on the basis of higher yield, eight high yielding mutant
cultures in VR 708 and nine mutants in GPU 26 were
isolated in M
4 generation. Vast majority of the high yielding
M
3progenies and M4 mutant cultures were from the groups
of M
2 mutagenic treatments showing significantly higher
population variance for yield/plant. Thus, selection of highyielding M2 plants and M3 progenies in mutagenic
treatments with much increased M
2 variance for yield
would be effective in isolation of high yielding micromutant
cultures.
 

Keywords: Finger millet, polygenic variability, genetic parameters, mutagenic treatments, micromutants

Info

Year: 2008
Volume: 68
Issue: 4
 Article DOI: N/A
Print ISSN: 0019-5200
Online ISSN: 0975-6906

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