Development of a Mutant Population of Micro-Tom Tomato Using Gamma-Irradiation

Knowledge of genetic resources is essential for breeders to create new crop varieties with improved characteristics. In this respect, mutant populations may conveniently provide a powerful tool for identifying new functional genes. Therefore, we used the Micro-Tom tomato variety, which has a reduced size and a relatively short life-cycle compared to other commercial tomato cultivars, to construct a mutant population using gamma-ray radiation as a mutagen. To determine the optimal mutagenic intensity of gamma rays for tomato, dry seeds of Micro-Tom were irradiated with gamma-ray intensities from 0 to 1000 gray (Gy) with increments of 100 Gy. The germination rate of mutagenized seeds (M1 seeds) on MS media was not affected by the tested gamma-ray intensity range. However, seedling growth was severely reduced with increasing irradiation. Seedling growth rate at eight days after germination showed that the median gamma-ray doses for hypocotyl and root elongation were 600 and 300-400 Gy, respectively. The survival test for 300, 400, and 500 Gy-treated M1 seeds showed that survival rates significantly decreased with increasing irradiation. The survival rate of 400 Gy-radiated seeds was 48%, while that of 500 Gy-radiated seeds was only 25%, compared with the control treatment. Therefore, we concluded that gamma-ray irradiation at 300-400 Gy is best for tomato mutagenesis. To find new mutants, M2 seeds produced by M1 plants were grown. We found several mutants, including plants with varying cotyledon number, variegated or red leaves, and green hypocotyls.