Regeneration of Plants from Protoplasts of Physalis Species
The genus Physalis (family Solanaceae) is of New World origin with 75 species reported (D’Arcy 1991). Work utilizing the species P. minima (ground cherry), P. ixocarpa (tomatillo), P. alkekengi (Chinese lantern), P. peruviana (cape gooseberry), and P. pru
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1 Introduction 1.1 Importance and Distribution The genus Physalis (family Solanaceae) is of New World origin with 75 species reported (D'Arcy 1991). Work utilizing the species P. minima (ground cherry), P. ixocarpa (tomatillo), P. alkekengi (Chinese lantern), P. peruviana (cape gooseberry), and P. pruinosa (ground cherry) has been reported in plant tissue culture literature. Due to both the imprecise definition of Physalis species and the lack of reported documentation of plant material, there may be some confusion of species used in this body ofliterature (Wolff 1991; Eash et al. 1993; D'Arcy pers. comm.). Since tissue culture media and growth conditions are often speciesspecific, it is advisable to verify and document the classification of any plant material. The question of identification of species is especially confusing with P. minima L. This name has been used with several kinds of green-fruited Physalis from the warm parts of Asia. Two of the correct names for these materials are P. angulata L. and P. cordate Miller. Table 1 gives abrief description of several species and any changes andjor concerns of nomenclature. Physalis has been used in traditional medicine, and the source of physiological activities has been traced to a group of phytosteroids known as withanolides (Glotter 1991). P. peruviana and certain related plants have been reported to produce withanolides that are growth inhibitory towards the Heliothis family of insects such as Helicoverpa zea (Heliothis zea), tomato fruitworm, and Spodoptera littoralis, fall armyworm (Ascher et al. 1987; EIliger and Waiss 1987). Recently, tomatillo has attracted much attention as a potential new vegetable crop for its use in Mexican food in the USA (Can et al. 1992). 1.2 Significance and Use of the Protoplasts of Physalis The primary use of protoplasts of the Physalis species is for crop improvement. This includes both the selection and rapid multiplication of varieties of different species (Torres et al. 1991) and the construction ofintergeneric hybrids with the
1 USDA-ARS Western Regional Research Center, 8()() Buchanan Street, Albany, California 94710, USA
Biotechnology in Agriculture and Forestry, Vol. 29 Plant Protoplasts and Genetic Engineering V(ed. by V.P.S. Bajaj) © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 1994
132
J.A. Eash and A.C. Waiss, Jr.
Table 1. Summary of the botanical names of common species of the genus Physalis. (Waterfall 1958, 1967; D'Arcy 1973; Nee 1986) Common Name
Description
Botanical Name
Chinese lantem
Orange-calyxed; first described in ltalyJAustria Orange-calyxed; fi rs t descri bed in Japan
P. alkekengi L.
P. fi"anchetlii Masters or P. angulata var. franchettii (Masters) Makino
NOTE: May be same species, although Japanese material tends to have larger, shiny calyx and larger flowers Tomatilla
Widely cultivated in Mexico, Central and South America.
Cape gooseberry
Native of South America; cultivated worldwide; sweet juicy fruits Several kinds of greenfruited Physalis found in warm areas of Asia Some material reidentified
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