Coleoptile color variation in Aegilops tauschii. I. Afghanistan, Iran, and Pakistan

Yoshihiro Matsuoka

Fukui Prefectural University

Fukui Prefectural University, Matsuoka-cho, Yoshida-gun, Fukui 910-1195, Japan

Email: matsuoka@fpu.ac.jp

Tel: +81-776-61-6000

Fax: +81-776-61-6015

I report coleoptile color variation observed among Aegilops tauschii accessions collected in Afghanistan, Iran, and Pakistan.  In the December of 2003 and 2004, one seed was sown for each accession in a pot in a slightly-heated greenhouse at Fukui Prefectural University.  Coleoptile color was checked by eye each year and classified as red (i.e., anthocyanin pigmentation) or green (i.e., no anthocyanin pigmentation) (Table 1).

In the 74 accessions tested, there are four accessions (KU2050, KU2051, KU2058, and KU2113) that have green coleoptiles.  Of those, KU2050, KU2051, and KU2058 are from the Maimana region in Afghanistan.  This result is consistent with Kihara et al’s observation for green coleoptiles to be found in seven out of 15 populations of the Maimana region (Kihara et al. 1965). 

The Ae. tauschii (syn. Ae. squarrosa L.) accessions used in this study are maintained at the Plant Germ-plasm Institute of Kyoto University.  I thank Taihachi Kawahara for the materials.  

References

Kihara H, Yamashita K and Tanaka M (1965)  Morphological, physiological, genetical and cytological studies in Aegilops and Triticum collected from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iran.  In: Yamashita K (ed) Results of the Kyoto University Scientific Expedition to the Karakoram and Hindukush, 1955, vol 1.  Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan, pp 1-118.