Pollen and seed fertility differences of the backcross progenies between Solanum virginianum and eggplant with different inheritance pattern of chloroplast DNA

- Fertility differences of two types of backcross progenies between S. virginianum and eggplant were investigated.
- Backcross progenies of line A were anther indehiscent and showed recombinant cpDNA inheritance.
- Backcross progenies of line B were anther dehiscent and showed maternal cpDNA inheritance.
- Pollen and seed fertility were found higher in line A compared to line B.
- Anther dehiscence and fertility differences between line A and line B controlled to some extent by chloroplast inheritance.

To find out the relationship of fertility with chloroplast inheritance, pollen and seed fertility differences of the backcross progenies between Solanum virginianum and eggplant with different inheritance pattern of chloroplast DNA were investigated. In our previous study, we developed anther indehiscent male sterile line of eggplant by producing an interspecific F1 hybrid (S. virginianum × S. melongena 'Senryo Nigou') followed by repeated backcrossing, using wild Solanum species S. virginianum as female parent and eggplant 'Uttara' as recurrent pollen parent. The BC1 and its succeeding generations were named as line A that carried recombinant chloroplast DNA (cpDNA) and showed anther indehiscent type of functional male sterility. In the present study, with the intention to make the BC1 progenies with maternal cpDNA, we tried to backcross the same F1 hybrid to eggplant 'Uttara' again. The new BC1 and the succeeding backcross progenies named as line B that carried maternal cpDNA and showed anther dehiscence. The F1 hybrid showed very low pollen and seed fertility. Pollen stainability and germination ability of line A were higher than those of the line B. Seed fertility of line B was found very low. On the contrary, seed fertility of line A was found high which was almost similar as eggplant 'Uttara'. The present study suggests that anther dehiscence, pollen and seed fertility differences between the backcross progenies of line A and line B controlled to some extent by chloroplast inheritance.