Tolga Izgu

Genetic Transformation in Citrus

Citrus is one of the worlds important fruit crops. Recently, citrus molecular genetics and biotechnology work have been accelerated in the world. Genetic transformation, a biotechnological tool, allows the release of improved cultivars with desirable characteristics in a shorter period of time and therefore may be useful in citrus breeding programs. Citrus transformation has now been achieved in a number of laboratories by various methods. Agrobacterium tumefaciens is used mainly in citrus transformation studies. Particle bombardment, electroporation, A. rhizogenes, and a new method called RNA interference are used in citrus transformation studies in addition to A. tumefaciens. In this review, we illustrate how different gene transformation methods can be employed in different citrus species.

Erratum to: Molecular Characterization of Cyclamen Species Collected from Different Parts of Turkey by RAPD and SRAP Markers.

The genus Cyclamen (family Myrsinaceae) contains about 20 species, most of which occur in the Mediterranean region. Turkey has critically important Cyclamen genetic resources. Molecular characterization of plant materials collected from different regions of Turkey in which Cyclamen species grow naturally, namely Adana, Antalya, Aydin, Mugla, Izmir, Denizli, Kahramanmaras, Osmaniye, Eskisehir, Trabzon, and Rize provinces, was performed using RAPD and SRAP markers. DNA was successfully amplified by 30 RAPD primers and 14 SRAP primer pairs. Among the 470 bands generated by the RAPD primers, 467 were polymorphic. The number of bands detected by a single primer set ranged from 11 to 22 (average of 15.6). The percentage polymorphism was 99.3 % based on the RAPD data. In the SRAP analysis, a total of 216 bands were generated, showing 100 % polymorphism. The number of bands detected by a single primer set ranged from 9 to 22 (average of 15.4). All data were scored and UPGMA dendrograms were constructed with similar results in both marker systems, i.e., different species from nine provinces of Turkey were separated from each other in the dendrograms with the same species being clustered together.

Turkish Cyclamen sps.

Cyclamen species is one of the most important ornamental plants worldwide as indoor and outdoor production. Somatic embryogenesis is important tools in breeding and mass propagation. This chapter is overview of the somatic embryogenesis techniques available for the micropropagation of wild cyclamen species. Protocols for regeneration in vitro through callus culture and somatic embryos/embryo like structures are obtained from different explant types and optimized results are highlighted.

In Vitro Culture of Turkish Origanum sipyleum L.

Origanum sipyleum L. is a species that is endemic to Turkey with known medicinal and aromatic properties and with a long historical use in Turkish folk medicine. Micropropagation serves as one possible method to clone and protect O. sipyleum . In this study, nodes, which served as the explants, were cultured on Murashige and Skoog (MS) basal medium supplemented with different concentrations of BA (0.1, 0.5, 1.0 mgL -1 ) and GA 3 (0.1, 0.2 mgL -1 ). Shoots were transferred to MS medium containing different concentrations of IBA (0, 0.5, 1, 1.5, 2, 2.5, 3 mgL -1 ) for root induction. Shoot regeneration, rooting, survival and acclimatization were possible. As many as 85% of nodes formed an average of 6 shoots/node on MS medium supplemented with 0.5 mgL -1 BA and 0.2 mgL -1 GA 3 . Rooting was most successful in 62.5% of shoots on MS medium with 1.5 or 2.5 mgL -1 IBA. Plantlets derived from all IBA combinations were transferred to autoclaved peat and perlite (1:1, v/v) and acclimatized in a greenhouse, with 79.1% survival. This protocol represents the first comprehensive in vitro regeneration protocol for endemic (Turkish) O. sipyleum .