Genetic stability and uniformity of Foeniculum vulgare Mill. regenerated plants through organogenesis and somatic embryogenesis

The use of cytological and, especially, nuclear DNA and cpDNA molecular analyses in assessing the genetic stability or instability of organogenesis and somatic embryogenesis-derived plants of one fennel (Foeniculum vulgare Mill.) donor plant belonging to Francia Pernod population, was evaluated. Different morphogenic callus types and both organogenic and embryogenic plants showed the normal diploid chromosome number. All regenerated plant types, when examined by RAPD analyses did not show any nuclear DNA polymorphism. No variation was detected in these plants independently from their morphogenic origin in two cpDNA regions which exhibited the same length, base sequence and restriction profiles. Moreover, the study of a cpDNA microsatellite region including a single A/T repeat did not reveal any variation of the repeat numbers in these regenerated plants. These results on the genetic stability and uniformity of organogenic and embryogenic regenerated fennel plants was supported also by a comparison of the cpDNA microsatellite region with other natural fennel plants where variations were found in some of them except Francia Pernod. (C) 2003 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.