In vitro expression of variation of glyphosate tolerance in Sorghum halepense

The in vitro response of five different Sorghum halepense biotypes against the non-selective, broad-spectrum herbicide glyphosate was assessed. Seeds from donor plants (collected in various sites all over Greece) were aseptically germinated on a hormone-free liquid Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium and emerging plantlets were inoculated on a solid MS medium supplemented with 13.6 μM 2.4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid and 4.6 μM kinetin for callus induction. Exponentially growing calli were initially subcultured twice on induction medium and then transferred to a selection medium containing 10⁻³ M or 10⁻⁴ M (a.i.) glyphosate. The fresh weight of the cultured calli and the callus viability (expressed as callus dehydrogenase activity) were reduced as glyphosate concentration increased. Significant differences were observed among different biotypes. Regenerated plantlets were submitted to a conventional evaluation for glyphosate tolerance. The observed in vitro response of S. halepense to glyphosate was directly related to the in vivo herbicide tolerance observed both on donor and on regenerant plants.