Mutation Induction Using Gamma-Ray Irradiation and High Frequency Embryogenic Callus from Coffee (Coffea arabica L.)

Abstract

AbstractMutation induction through chemical or physical mutagenesis has been widely used for crop improvement for more than 70 years. Coffee is one of the most important crops in Latin-America, and, as any other crop, it can be affected by pests and diseases. Coffee leaf rust (CLR), caused by the biotrophic fungus Hemileia vastatrix, is the most important disease affecting Arabica coffee leading to significant losses for growers. As a perennial crop, conventional breeding of Arabica coffee is time-consuming. Plant tissue culture in combination with mutation induction techniques can provide an alternative approach to increase genetic variability of Arabica coffee for breeding applications. The present chapter describes protocols to establish embryogenic callus suspensions from Arabica coffee cv Venecia and for gamma ray irradiation of callus suspension cultures to achieve genetic improvement in the crop.