Seasonal effect on tissue culture response and plant regeneration frequency from non-bombarded and bombarded immature scutella of barley (Hordeum vulgare) harvested from a controlled enviroment

Scutella of immature embryos from two barley cultivars were used for cell culture and transformation. Explants were supplied by continuous growth of donor plants in a 2-week schedule under defined conditions: at first plants were grown for 6-7 weeks in a growth chamber, followed by 10-13 weeks in a greenhouse with stringent control of temperature and light round the year. Strong seasonal variation in plant regeneration frequency was observed for both genotypes in non-bombarded (control) as well as bombarded and subsequent selected explants. Scutella from immature embryos of cv. Salome showed increased frequencies of plant regeneration from January to March, reaching highest values in March/April and followed by a continuous and strong decrease from May to December. This tendency was observed in all 3 years studied, although absolute numbers of plant regeneration varied between the years. The same seasonal effect was evident for plant regeneration from immature scutella of cv. Golden Promise. Frequency of embryogenic callus formation was also found to be influenced by season but this effect was not so pronounced as for plant regeneration.