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ARS Home » Plains Area » Lincoln, Nebraska » Wheat, Sorghum and Forage Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #62463
Title: NUCLEAR DNA CONTENT AND CHLOROPLAST DNA POLYMORPHISMS AMONG ACCESSIONS OF PANICUM VIRGATUM L. FROM REMNANT MIDWESTERN PRAIRIES

Author
item ELMORE, S - UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA
item Vogel, Kenneth
item LEE, D - UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA
item ARUMUGANATHAN, K - UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA
item KAEPPLER, S - UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA

Submitted to: Crop Science
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 4/1/1997
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary: Switchgrass, Panicum virgatum L., is a perennial grass that is native to most of the United States. The objective of this research was to determine if DNA content of cells and chloroplast DNA composition existed among and within switchgrass accessions from remnant midwestern prairie sites. Flow cytometry was used to determine cellular DNA content and a chloroplast restriction fragment length polymorphisms (RFLP) was used to investigate chloroplast differences. Plants with different chloroplast RFLP patterns have different cytotypes. One accession contained a mixture of cytotypes indicating that both cytotypes can occur at a single remnant prairie site. The other midwestern remnant prairies that were represented in this study contained only one cytotype. The flow cytometry results indicated that the switchgrass populations found within the midwestern sites can be a mixture of ploidy levels with either 3 or 6 picograms of DNA per cell. These results indicate that the germplasm from midwestern prairies needs to be identified according to DNA content and cytotype before it is utilized by plant breeders.

Technical Abstract: Panicum virgatum L.(switchgrass)is a perennial grass that is native to most of the United States. Switchgrasses principal use has been as a pasture and range grass for forage production during the warmer summer months. The objective of this research was to determine if DNA content and cpDNA polymorphisms existed among and within switchgrass accessions from remnant midwestern prairie sites. Twenty-eight switchgrass accessions from remnant prairie sites were surveyed for U or L cytotype in the cpDNA using BamHI restriction endonuclease and sorghum cpDNA probe pLD 5. These accessions were also surveyed for DNA content differences using flow cytometry. One accession, IA 31 contained a mixture of cytotypes indicating that both cytotypes can occur at a single remnant prairie site. The other midwestern remnant prairies that were represented in this study, contained only the U cytotype. The flow cytometry results indicated that the switchgrass populations found within the midwestern sites can be a mixture of ploidy levels with either 3 or 6 pg of DNA per cell. These results indicate that the germplasm from midwestern prairies needs to be identified according to DNA content and cytotype before it is utilized by plant breeders.