Influence of medium components on anther culture of spring wheat

The effects of AgNO₃, osmotic potential and nitrogen source in a modified 85D12 medium were investigated for callus and plant production with two spring wheat genotypes, Chris and Pavon. No significant effect was found with AgNO₃. However, altering the osmotic potential in the medium by changing the carbohydrate source/concentration or by adding a non-metabolized osmoticum appeared to be very effective for improving anther-derived green plant production. The highest number of Chris plants(11.5 plants per 100 anthers) was obtained with a low level of PEG(polyethyleneglycol) in the medium. In the experiment to determine the effect of nitrate source and ammonium concentration, the interaction between nitrate source and ammonium concentration was significant for callus formation and plant regeneration. The largest numbers of calli and plants were obtained from the potassium nitrate medium without ammonium nitrate. Therefore, the osmotic potential and nitrogen source can affect anther culture of wheat, and must be considered.