A novel virescence mutant simplifies hybridization in finger millet breeding

Abstract

Abstract A virescent mutant (v1) was induced by Ethyl Methane Sulphonate in an improved finger millet variety, Indaf 8. The v1 mutant expresses yellow leaf color stably at seedling stage and gradually turns green as the growth progress. The SPAD value (indicating chlorophyll content) in v1 seedlings was half of that in wild type, which increased as growth advanced from tillering to grand growth and grain filling stages. Virescence mutation had pleiotropic effect on flowering (delayed) and plant height (reduced) but no significant influence on other agronomic traits including grain yield. Genetic analysis using F2 − 3 generations revealed the control of the trait by recessive state of a single nuclear gene. Hybrid recovery assessed in contact method of crossing using virescent lines ranged from 0.2–15.7% with an average of 5.1%. In finger millet breeding, hybridization is limited due to low hybrid recovery and non-availability of robust markers for F1 identification. Present study demonstrated the potential of seedling stage virescence marker in F1 identification to make hybridization more simple and rapid. This is the first report on utilization of virescence marker in finger millet breeding.