Genomic structure of androgenic progeny of pentaploid hybrids, Festuca arundinacea × Lolium multiflorum

To assess the usefulness of the doubled haploid (DH) method in the breeding of forage grasses, a sample of anther-derived progeny of pentaploid F₁ hybrids of Festuca arundinacea × Lolium multifiorum was karyotyped using genomic in situ hybridization (GISH). The technique allowed scoring of the total number of chromosomes, the number of chromosomes contributed by each parent, and the number and positions of the Festuca-Lolium translocation breakpoints. Among 27 plants analysed, 13 belonged to three clones, effectively reducing the number of different progeny karyotyped to 17. These included 10 haploids, five doubled haploids and two plants for which the origins could not be explained. In all plants analysed, a mixture of chromosomes of both parents was present, including an average of 1.88 intergeneric translocations per plant. The translocation breakpoints were distributed along almost the entire length of the chromosome arms. Chromosome variation among androgenic progeny appeared much wider than that in the conventional backcross but low vigour and high mortality suggest that this additional variation may be difficult to exploit directly in breeding. However, a change in the pattern of recombination makes the entire genome accessible to manipulation.