Functional cybrid plants of Lycopersicon peruvianum var 'dentatum' with chloroplasts of Lycopersicon esculentum

Fertile cybrid plants of three subclones. B1A, B3A, B4A were regenerated fr om the single colony obtained after the fusion of mesophyll protoplasts of plastome chlorophyll-deficient mutant Lycopersicon peruvianum var 'dentatum ' (line 3767) and gamma-irradiated mesophyll protoplasts of L. esculentum ( cv 'Quedlinburger Fruhe Liebe'). Cytogenetic, isozyme, RAPD, morphological and restriction analyses all showed that the subclones had the nuclear geno me of L. peruvianum var 'dentatum' and plastome genome of L. esculentum. wh ile the mitochondrial genome was altered. No phenotypical traits that could be taken as evidence of plastome-genome incompatibility in the cybrid subc lones were observed. Genetic functionality of all subclones was proven by t he backcrossing analysis. To study the functionality of the cybrid plants w e also carried out an analysis of their photosynthetic system. Data on chlo rophyll-a and -b content, analyses of the fluorescence induction curves, in tensity of CO2 assimilation, pigment-protein complexes and polypeptides of thylakoid membranes showed the absence of structural and functional abnorma lities in the photo-synthetic apparatus of the cybrid plants. We concluded that the plastome of L. esculentum is able to effectively interract with th e nuclear genome of L. peruvianum var 'dentatum' and together with the reco mbined chondriome can support genetic functionality of cybrid plants of the peruvianum tomato.