Identification of Male-Sterile and Normal Cytoplasmic Types in Carrot (Daucus carota L.) Cultivars Using Mitochondrial DNA Markers

Document Type : Research Paper

Author

Seed and Plant Certification and Registration Research Institute, Agricultural Research, Education and Extension Organization (AREEO), Karaj, Iran

10.22124/jms.2026.10033

Abstract

Hybrid seed production requires the maintenance of parental lines, controlled pollination, and assurance of genetic purity, all of which increase production costs. In the present study, the efficiency of mitochondrial markers located at the atp1, atp6, atp9, atp8, nad6, and cob loci was evaluated for distinguishing cytoplasmic male sterile (CMS) and normal cytoplasms in 46 carrot genotypes. The cmt-1/cmt-2 (atp1) primer pair amplified 392- and 321-bp fragments, allowing clear discrimination between normal and CMS cytoplasms. The cmt-6/cmt-7 (atp6) and cmt-8/atp6-ul (atp6) primer pairs amplified 1100- and 373-bp fragments in CMS and normal cytoplasms, respectively. At the atp9 locus, the amplification pattern differed between the two cytoplasms based on fragment size. At the atp8 locus, the cmt-15/atp8-u2 and cmt-10/atp8-u1 primer pairs generated diagnostic fragments of 1508 and 751 bp in CMS and normal cytoplasms, respectively. The nad6 and cob markers were amplified exclusively in CMS cytoplasm. Heatmap analysis revealed that among nine commercial cultivars labeled as F1, only Newhal, Nativa, and Santa Cruz exhibited molecular profiles associated with CMS, whereas the remaining cultivars were consistent with normal cytoplasm. Therefore, the F1 designation alone cannot be considered a reliable indicator of CMS, and a more accurate assessment of the genetic nature of cultivars requires complementary analyses. In addition, Hero F1 displayed both CMS- and normal cytoplasm-associated markers, suggesting possible mitochondrial genome rearrangements or heteroplasmy. These findings highlight the importance of using multiple independent mitochondrial markers for CMS identification and the preliminary evaluation of carrot cultivars in hybrid seed production programs.

Keywords

References

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Iranian Journal of Seed Sciences and Research
Volume 13, Issue 1
April 2026
Pages 15-31

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