High-purity Seed Production of Doubled Haploid Chinese Cabbage [Brassica rapa L. ssp. pekinensis (Lour.)] Through Microspore Culture

The purpose of this study was to produce doubled haploid red color heading type Chinese cabbage using isolated microspore culture. Genotypic differences in embryogenic response and regenerative ability of microspore-derived embryos to plants were observed. A high rate of plant regeneration from microspore-derived embryos was achieved by an improved protocol involving replacement of culture media and adjustment of heat shock temperature. More than 60% of regenerated plants were spontaneous doubled haploids. Haploids were characterized by short and malformed stamen and few viable pollen grains as compared to spontaneous doubled haploids and dihaploids. The seeds harvested from the 142 spontaneous doubled haploid plants were designated as H1; 25 seeds in each population was grown and characterized. The H1 generation has been shown to display considerable phenotypic variation and high purity. These spontaneous doubled haploids may be directly exploited as new varieties in a red colored Chinese cabbage breeding program.