Focus on Seed Biotechnologies
 
home news forum careers events suppliers solutions markets resources directories advertise contacts search site plan
 
   
 

.
Keyword

 
SEED BIOTECHNOLOGIES

information presented by SeedQuest and The Seed Biotechnology Center at UC Davis

home
primers
germplasm resources
variety development
seed production
storage and conservation
seed enhancement
commercialization
news
forum
careers & education
events
suppliers
markets
resources
more information
LEARN MORE
Seed Biotechnology Center at UC Davis
sbc.ucdavis.edu
 
 
 
introduction
plant breeding
genetic engineering
genotyping
induced mutation
marker-assisted breeding
phenomics
proteomics

Induced Mutation

A mutation is any change in a DNA sequence that can be passed from parent to offspring. By inducing mutations, scientists have been able to increase genetic variation, which breeders depend on to produce crops with desirable traits, such as resistance to diseases and insects.

Unlike recombinant DNA techniques, induced mutation does not add any foreign genetic material into the plant.

Essentially, it produces results that could have occurred through naturally occurring mutations and selection of desirable progeny. However, as mutations occur naturally at low frequencies and randomly in the DNA, it would require much more time to achieve such results.

Mutations can be induced in a variety of ways, such as by exposure to ultraviolet or ionizing radiation or chemical mutagens.

Since the 1950s, over 2,000 crop varieties have been developed by inducing mutations to randomly alter genetic traits and then selecting for improved types among the progeny.

Many common foods, such as popular red grapefruit varieties, are the result of induced mutations. Recently, methods have been developed to allow scientists to efficiently identify and select for mutations in specific genes.

This is enhancing the utilization of induced mutation in plant breeding, as changes in genes known to produce specific results can be identified rather than having to screen very large populations of plant to find the rare individuals with the desired trait.

 

information presented by SeedQuest and The Seed Biotechnology Center at UC Davis

 


Copyright © SeedQuest - All rights reserved