Morphology, inheritance and mapping of a compressed lamina mutant of carrot

A compressed lamina mutant at a locus named COLA was selected in an inbred population of the cultivated carrot Daucus carota sativus Hoffm. Whereas segregation analyses of F₂ progenies, as well as corresponding F₃ families, indicated a monogenic recessive inheritance, detailed morphological and histological analyses revealed pleiotropic effects of the COLA gene. The mutant plants exhibited a semi‐dwarf phenotype, shortened epidermal and leaf parenchyma cells and significantly reduced lamina dimensions. Furthermore, the mutant developed stipules and hypogynous flowers, contrary to the stipule‐less leaves and epigynous flowers of the wild type. Using bulked segregant analyses, thirty‐nine marker candidates were detected using 180 RAPD primer and 56 AFLP primer pairs. Twelve primers were linked to the COLA locus and mapped in a linkage group with a total length of 44.2 cM. Potential application of the compressed lamina mutant in carrot research is discussed.