GAMETIC EMBRYOGENESIS AS STRATEGY FOR PHALAENOPSIS (Orchidaceae) BREEDING

• Grant number: 18/20673-3
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• Start date: February 01, 2019
• End date: January 31, 2022
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Agronomy - Floriculture, Parks and Gardens
• Principal Investigator: Jean Carlos Cardoso
• Grantee: Jean Carlos Cardoso
• Host Institution: Centro de Ciências Agrárias (CCA). Universidade Federal de São Carlos (UFSCAR). Araras , SP, Brazil
• Associated researchers: Maria Imaculada Zucchi
• Associated scholarship(s): 21/05974-0 - Rooting, acclimatization and morphological and physiological analysis of Phalaenopsis seedlings obtained from irradiated pollines., BP.TT; 20/09426-4 - Viability, germination and in vitro development of Phalaenopsis seedlings obtained with irradiated pollines, BP.TT

Abstract

Nowadays, there is a great dependence on Brazilian floriculture for cultivars and other technologies developed abroad. The development of programs of breeding and clonal propagation of flower species in Brazil, such as orchids of the genus Phalaenopsis, is a solution to increase the competitiveness of the Brazilian floriculture. In the propagation of this genus there is an increasing demand for plantlets of superior cultivars with high flowering quality, associated with the genetic uniformity of the cultivated plants, which provides large-scale production feasible and with the production of flowering pots in all seasons of the year. Although numerous, the propagation by seeds of Phalaenopsis presents great desuniformity in the progenies. The clonal propagation by induction of in vitro shoots has low multiplication efficiency, increasing the production cost. Thus, one way forward to replace the current cloning techniques would be the production of plantlets of Phalaenopsis from embryos, but without the genetic variability, characteristic of this group of orchids. This would be possible by the production of homozygous lines to obtain F1 hybrids. Within this purpose, in-situ gynogenesis experiments in Phalaenopsis are being proposed using pollination with irradiated pollen grains. This method aims to replace the current clonal in vitro micropropagation and would allow advances in the methods of breeding and production of clonal plantlets, currently used and with low rate of shoots multiplication, reducing production costs and further increasing the technological level of cultivation of this important species for the world floriculture. The production of F1 hybrids, resulted from the double-haploid technology in Phalaenopsis could result in obtaining lower cost seedlings and superior cultivars, allowing insertion of characteristics of interest, with maintenance of high genetic uniformity and hybrid vigor, not yet explored in this commercial group. (AU)

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

CARDOSO, JEAN CARLOS; VENDRAME, WAGNER APARECIDO. Innovation in Propagation and Cultivation of Ornamental Plants. HORTICULTURAE, v. 8, n. 3, p. 4-pg., 2022-03-01. (18/20673-3)

IIYAMA, CARLA MIDORI; VILCHERREZ-ATOCHE, JOE ABDUL; GERMANA, MARIA ANTONIETTA; VENDRAME, WAGNER APARECIDO; CARDOSO, JEAN CARLOS. Breeding of ornamental orchids with focus on Phalaenopsis: current approaches, tools, and challenges for this century. HEREDITY, v. 132, n. 4, p. 16-pg., 2024-02-02. (18/20673-3, 20/09426-4)