• R.GUNASEKAR

Abstract: Plant male sterility refers to the failure in the production of fertile pollen. It occurs spontaneously in natural populations and may be caused by genes encoded in the nuclear (genic male sterility; GMS) or mitochondrial (cytoplasmic male sterility; CMS) genomes. The exploitation of male sterility systems has enabled the commercialization of heterosis in many crops. This feature has great agronomic value for the production of hybrid seeds, since it prevents self-pollination without the need of emasculation which is time-consuming and cost-intensive. CMS has been widely used in crops, such as corn, rice, wheat, citrus, and several species of the family Solanaceae and Cruciferous. Mitochondrial genes determining CMS have been uncovered in a wide range of plant species. The modes of action of CMS have been classified in terms of the effect they produce in the cell, which ultimately leads to a failure in the production of fertile pollen. The interaction of chimeric mitochondrial genes with nuclear genes causes CMS, which may be restored by restorer of fertility (Rf) genes. Male fertility can be restored by nuclear-encoded genes, termed restorer-offertility (Rf) factors. CMS from wild plants has been transferred to species of agronomic interest through somatic hybridization. Somatic hybrids have also been produced to generate CMS depends upon recombination of the mitochondrial genomes of two parental plants or by separating the CMS cytoplasm from the nuclear Rf alleles. As a result, somatic hybridization can be used as a highly efficient and useful strategy to incorporate CMS in breeding programs.

Keywords: Self- incompatibility, mitochondrial gene, somatic hybrid, genetic recombination, Fertility restoration

"Male Sterility and Fertility Restoration in Crops", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.8, Issue 3, page no.2000-2009, March-2021, Available :http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIR2103248.pdf

"Male Sterility and Fertility Restoration in Crops", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org | UGC and issn Approved), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.8, Issue 3, page no. pp2000-2009, March-2021, Available at : http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIR2103248.pdf