Pollen Irradiation and Possible Gene Transfer in Nicotiana Species

Progeny from crosses of Nicotiana langsdorffii with gamma irradiated pollen of Nicotiana alata 'Crimson Bedder' showed skewed segregation in the F2 favoring the maternal parent. This is probably not gene transfer in a strict sense, rather just an extreme case of reduced transmission of irradiated chromosomes, leading to massive overrepresentation of maternal genes. Gene transfer or mutational loss may explain some anomalous F1 plants. Segregation in the F2 progeny showed the presence of several genes from the irradiated pollen. Crosses of Nicotiana sylvestris, N. plumbaginifolia N. paniculata, and Petunia parodii with irradiated pollen from N. alata and Petunia hybrida showed no evidence of gene transfer, nor did experiments with irradiated mentor pollen. This indicates that gene transfer with irradiated pollen between non-crossing species or between species giving sterile hybrids is probably a rare phenomenon.