In vitro screening of potato lines for drought tolerance
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In vitro screening of potato lines for drought tolerance Fahed Albiski & Safaa Najla & Rabab Sanoubar & Nour Alkabani & Ramzi Murshed
Published online: 29 August 2012 # Prof. H.S. Srivastava Foundation for Science and Society 2012
Abstract Fresh water resources are limited and their use in agricultural production is expected to come under increasing constraints. Eighteen Syrian lines of potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) were screened for drought tolerance by measuring aerial and root growth in vitro. Drought stress was evaluated by adding 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10 % (w:v) of sorbitol to MurashigeSkoog medium and compared to 0 % for the control. Water potential of media ranged from −0.58 MPa to −2.5 MPa. Water-stress in culture adversely affected plant growth, and genotypes differed for their responses. Plant length and stem thickness, leaf area, root number length and thickness, and plant fresh and dry weights and plant water content were measured and all decreased due to drought. Grouping lines by cluster analysis for response to drought resulted in: (1) a tolerant group of six lines, (2) a moderately tolerant group of seven lines, and (3) a susceptible group of five lines. The variation in germplasm indicated that potato varieties can be developed for production under some levels of drought. Keywords Solanum tuberosum . Drought . Sorbitol . Stress
Introduction Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) is one of the most important vegetables in the world. It provides significant amounts of starch, antioxidants, protein, vitamins, macro- and micronutrients, polyphenols, carotenoids and tocopherols (Brown F. Albiski : N. Alkabani NCBT (National Commission for Biotechnology), Damascus, P. O. Box: 301902, Syria S. Najla : R. Sanoubar : R. Murshed (*) Department of Horticultural Sciences, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Damascus, Damascus, P. O. Box: 30621, Syria e-mail: [email protected]
2005) to the human diet, but these values are affected by both cultivar and growing conditions. In Syria, potato production is 709,601 metric tons on 35,751 hectares in 2009 (FAOSTAT 2009). During the last years, potato consumption has increased despite the high prices. The producers in Syria tend to use imported seed tubers which increases cost of production, because of the high costs and the weak adaptation of growing varieties to local environmental conditions resulted in yield losses. In addition, the potential for importation of new diseases and pests on imported seed tubers can occur. Production of local potato varieties with high yield, improved quality, storage and processing characteristics and stress resistance is important. In Syria, potatoes can be exposed to drought resulting from high ambient temperatures and low humidity during summer and autumn that reduces tuber yield and quality. Drought impairs mitosis, cell elongation and expansion, resulting in a reduction in plant length, leaf area and crop growth (Kaya et al. 2006; Hussain et al. 2008). Reduction of leaf size is the first morphological manifestation due to droug
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