About Book

Biotechnology has brought about a revolution in the way that plant genetic resources can be utilized. Plants are the basis of life on planet Earth. Plants are the only organisms capable of using the solar energy for transforming the carbon dioxide in the air into organic substances. Agriculture, with nurturing and utilizing plant diversity, plays a key role in feeding millions and protecting our natural resources and the environment. Plant genetic resources are any living material of present and potential value for humans. Plant genetic resources include all our agricultural crops and some of their wild relatives because they possess valuable traits. It describes the application of novel genomic technologies, as well as their integration with established techniques, towards the understanding of the genetic variation captured in both in situ and ex situ collections of crop and non-crop plants. These advances in biotechnology, brought about by a combination of in-vitro (tissue culture) technology, genetics and molecular biology, are changing the way that we look at gene pools and at the potential for crop improvement. This book focuses on current trends and techniques in biotechnology and plant genetics. It outlines the processes and applications of this subject in detail. It describes embryology of flowering plants, cytogenetic studies, molecular marker, genetic diversity assessment, pollen allergenicity, genetic resources, legume-rhizobium symbiosis, gene targeting and genetic transformation. It also delves in epigenetic modifications and induced mutation. Any resource of value clearly needs to be protected and plant genetic resources are no exception. The topic covered in the extensive book deal with the core subjects of this field. Coherent flow of topics, student-friendly language and extensive use of examples make this book an invaluable source of knowledge. As this field is emerging at a rapid pace, the contents of this book will help the readers understand the modern concepts and applications of the subject.

Preface............................................................................................................v

Chapter 1 Epigenetic Modifications in Plants under Abiotic Stress.................1

Abstract...................................................................................................1

1. Introduction............................................................................................1

2. Different types of epigenetic modifications.....................................4

3. Epigenetic changes in crops against abiotic stresses.....................6

4. Techniques for deciphering epigenetic changes in plants..........10

5. Conclusions..........................................................................................11

Acknowledgements.............................................................................12

Conflict of interest..............................................................................12

Abbreviations.......................................................................................12

Chapter 2 Induced Mutation: Creating Genetic Diversity in Plants...............19

Abstract.................................................................................................19

1. Introduction..........................................................................................19

2. Natural mutagenesis...........................................................................22

3. Induced mutation................................................................................25

4. Use of induced mutations in the enrichment of plant genetic

resources...............................................................................................27

5. Conclusion............................................................................................30

Conflict of interest..............................................................................30

Chapter 3 Plant Genetic Control over Infection Thread Development during Legume-Rhizobium Symbiosis..............................................................37

Abstract.................................................................................................37

1. Introduction..........................................................................................38

2. Plant genetic control over the IT development............................40

3. Conclusion............................................................................................58

Acknowledgements.............................................................................58

Chapter 4 Seeds of Change — Plant Genetic Resources and People’s

Livelihoods.................................................................................................75

1. Introduction..........................................................................................75

2. Plant genetic resources and people’s livelihood...........................77

3. Human impact on plant genetic resources and options for their

maintenance..........................................................................................80

4. Examples for the potential of introducing underused genetic

resources...............................................................................................85

5. Tools for the evaluation of impact assessment.............................88

6. Final consideration..............................................................................94

Chapter 5 Gene Targeting and Genetic Transformation of Plants................105

1. Introduction........................................................................................105

2. Homologous and non-homologous recombination....................107

3. Tyrosine family recombination systems.......................................111

4. Serine family recombinase systems...............................................112

5. Zinc finger nuclease and gene targeting......................................113

6. Prospects for further development................................................114

7. Conclusions........................................................................................115

Chapter 6 Pollen Allergenicity is Highly Dependent on the Plant Genetic

Background: The “Variety”/“Cultivar” Issues ................................118

1. Introduction........................................................................................118

2. Taxonomy of allergenic plants ......................................................119

3. Infraspecific botanical names ........................................................121

4. Pollens with described differential allergenicity within

infraspecific taxonomical ranks .....................................................122

5. Conclusions and future perspectives .........................................129

Acknowledgement ...........................................................................130

Chapter 7 Genomics Meets Biodiversity: Advances in Molecular Marker

Development and Their Applications in Plant Genetic Diversity

Assessment ..............................................................................................152

1. Introduction........................................................................................152

2. Why does genetic diversity matter? ............................................156

3. The molecular toolbox: Recent technical advances in genetic

diversity assessment ........................................................................159

4. Beyond molecular marker diversity: Statistical analysis of

polymorphism data...........................................................................170

5. Phylogenetic methods and phylogenetic diversity.....................178

6. Acknowledgements...........................................................................182

Chapter 8 Embryology of Flowering Plants Applied to Cytogenetic Studies

on Meiosis................................................................................................193

1. Introduction........................................................................................193

2. Terminology applied to meiosis in plants and pollen grains..195

3. Meiosis and pollen grain: Cellular and sub-cellular aspects...197

4. Cytogenetic studies involving embryological approaches ......202

5. Acknowledgment .............................................................................215

6. Conclusion .........................................................................................215

Citation......................................................................................................223

Index...........................................................................................................225

About Author

Jong-Sun Lamotta pursued his Ph.D. in Sustainable Crop Production from Public University, Gyeonggi. He is actively engaged in the researches focused on plant physiology, plant genetics and crop rotation. He also serves on the editorial board of two renowned international journals in the field of agronomy along with serving as a guest lecturer for several prestigious universities across Asia and Europe. He consistently shares his knowledge with the researcher fraternity by organizing lectures and conferences around the globe. He has also contributed dozens of articles and research papers on structural and functional genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, and bioinformatics.