Citrus Fruit Sector Chimeras as a Genetic Resource for Cultivar Improvement

Abstract

Citrus fruit with sector chimeras were collected in commercial packinghouses and from the field. Chimeric fruit from eight cultivars of sweet oranges [Citrus sinensis (L.) Osbeck], grapefruit (C. paradisi Macf.), tangelo (C. paradisi × C. reticulate Blanco), and tangors (C. reticulate × c. sinensis) were found at a frequency of 0.009% to 0.271%. Tetraploid plants obtained from one type of sector mutant (termed gigas) and albino plants obtained from another type of sector mutant confirmed that some genetic mutations observed in fruit rind can be recovered in nucellar seedlings. The gigas chimeras were identified as a source of citrus tetraploids. Several types of potentially useful sector mutants with altered rind color were observed, and plants were produced from some mutant sectors by developed seed or culture of aborted ovules. HPLC analysis of rind tissues from sectors of one chimeric fruit revealed substantial quantitative and qualitative differences in pigment composition. Propagation of plants from mutant sectors may yield cultivars with improved fruit color, altered maturation date, and reduced disease or mite susceptibility and may eventually lead to breeding of seedless triploid hybrids.