MUTATION BREEDING AND THE MUTANT SECTOR PROBLEM IN ARABIDOPSIS
In reply to the objections raised by Redei (1974), the 34:1 segregation ratios of Harle (1972), which had been interpreted as indicating a "germ line" consisting of 8 or 9 cells in the resting Arabidopsis seed, were reexamined in comparison with the 7:1 ratios and 1 or 2 cells found by other workers. The difference was not caused by prolonged exposure of successive cell generations, as the first cell division in germinating seeds occurred only after 39 hours, while the half life for the decomposition of the mutagen (diethyl sulfate) was one hour. The new method for calculating mutation frequencies also did not account for the difference, as the use of the standard method produced almost the same conclusions. The difference found could be ascribed to the use of viable mutations in the calculations, rather than the chlorophyl-deficient and embryonic-lethal mutations normally used in experimental plant mutagenesis. The suggested modification of mutation breeding procedures was reaffirmed.