Male fertility of varieties of potato whith different cytoplasma type

The predominance of varieties and parental lines having low male fertility is a characteristic feature of potatoes as a culture with asexual reproduction. The growth of the share of male sterile varieties has been recently noticed as a result of use in breeding interspecific hybrids with sterile-type cytoplasm. It leads to narrowing the genetic basis of modern potato varieties since it limits the choice of pollinators for breeding. The objectives of this research were to assess male fertility characters of 130 potato varieties from the collection of the Institute of Genetics and Cytology of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus and identify their cytoplasm type using the set of DNA markers. The obtained results are intended for selection of pollinators for conventional breeding of potato, as well as of varieties for production of dihaploids with fertile-type cytoplasm suitable for hybrid breeding at the diploid level. It was revealed that the accessions with T- and D-type cytoplasm prevailed in the collection (46.0 and 35.4 %, respectively), the share of the accessions with W-type cytoplasm was 18.5 %. Most of the effective pollinators were selected among the varieties having T/β-type cytoplasm (44.6 %). The varieties Aksamit, Briz, Dubrava, Uladar, Alwara, Ausonia, Carlita, Fresco, Labadia, Latona, Liu, Lyra, Quarta, Satina, Sissi with this cytoplasm type were selected as most promising for our purposes according to the combination of breeding characters. The potato varieties with D/α-type cytoplasm were present in the collection under study. Approximately one third (32.6 %) was able to produce functionally fertile pollen (PFF), however the level of its fertility was as a rule low. Nevertheless, the varieties Bashkirski, Delfin, Olga and Ponto formed pollen with PFF suitable to guarantee seed production in crosses. Most of the studied varieties with W/α-, W/β-, and W/γ-type cytoplasm were male sterile. The varieties Atlant and Vesna Belaya were revealed among them that were able to produce functionally fertile pollen.

1. Carroll C. P., Low R. J. Aspects of male fertility in group Tuberosum dihaploids. Potato Research, 1976, vol. 19, no. 2, pp. 109–121. https://doi.org/10.1007/bf02360411

2. Watanabe K., Orrillo M., Iwanaga M., Ortiz R., Freyre R., Perez S. Diploid potato germplasm derived from wild and land race genetic resources. American Potato Journal, 1994, vol. 71, no. 9, pp. 599–604. https://doi.org/10.1007/bf02851525

3. Sanetomo R., Gebhardt C. Cytoplasmic genome types of European potatoes and their effects on complex agronomic traits. BMC Plant Biology, 2015, vol. 15, no. 6, art. 162. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12870-015-0545-y

4. Zoteyeva N. M., Antonova O. Yu., Klimenko N. S., Apalikova O. V., Carlson-Nilsson U., Karabitsina Yu. I., Ukhatova Yu. V., Gavrilenko T. A. Facilitation of introgressive hybridization of wild polyploid Mexican potato species using DNA markers of R genes and of different cytoplasmic types. Selskokhozajstvennaja biologija = Agriculture biology, 2017, vol. 52, no. 5, pp. 964–975 (in Russian). https://doi.org/10.15389/agrobiology.2017.5.964rus

5. Mihovilovich E., Sanetomo R., Hosaka K., Ordoñez B., Aponte M., Bonierbale M. Cytoplasmic diversity in potato breeding: case study from the International Potato Center. Molecular Breeding, 2015, vol. 35, no. 6, art. 137. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11032-015-0326-1

6. Lindhout P., Meijer D., Schotte T. Ronald C. B., Hutten R. C. B., Visser R. G. F., van Eck H. J. Towards F1 hybrid seed potato breeding. Potato Research, 2011, vol. 54, no. 4, pp. 301–312. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11540-011-9196-z

7. Yeh B. P., Peloquin S. J., Hougas R. W. Meiosis in Solanum tuberosum haploids and haploid– haploid F1 hybrids. Canadian Journal of Genetic and Cytology, 1964, vol. 6, no. 4, pp. 393–402. https://doi.org/10.1139/g64-050

8. Hosaka K., Sanetomo R. Development of a rapid identification method for potato cytoplasm and its use for evaluating Japanese collections. Theoretical and Applied Genetics, 2012, vol. 125, no. 6, pp. 1237–1251. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00122-012-1909-4

9. Grun P., Ochoa C., Capage D. Evolution of cytoplasmic factors in tetraploid cultivated potatoes (Solanaceae). American Journal of Botany, 1977, vol. 64, no. 4, pp. 412–420. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.1537-2197.1977.tb12363.x

10. Dionne L. A. Cytoplasmic sterility in derivatives of Solanum demissum. American Potato Journal, 1961, vol. 38, no. 4, pp. 117–120. https://doi.org/10.1007/bf02870217

11. Lőssl A., Gőtz M., Braun A., Wenzel G. Molecular markers for cytoplasm in potato: male sterility and contribution of different plastid-mitochondrial configurations to starch production. Euphytica, 2000, vol. 116, no. 3, pp. 221–230. https://doi.org/10.1023/a:1004039320227

12. Yermishin A. P., Voronkova E. V. Development of initial material for marker assisted potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) parental line breeding at the diploid level (review). Selskokhozjajstvennaja biologija = Agriculture Biology, 2017, vol. 52, no. 1, pp. 50–62 (in Russian). https://doi.org/10.15389/agrobiology.2017.1.50rus

13. Pallais N., Fong N., Berrios D. Research on the physiology of potato sexual seed production. Proceeding of International conference “Innovative methods for propagating potatoes”. Lima, CIP, 1984, pp. 149–168.

14. Hosaka K., Sanetomo R. Application of a PCR-based cytoplasm genotyping method for phylogenetic analysis in potato. American Journal of Potato Research, 2014, vol. 91, no. 3, pp. 246–253. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12230-013-9344-x