Induction of Somaclonal Variation in Saccharum Officinarum L : Microsatellite analysis of micropropagated plants of sugarcane rejuvenated to make them disease free and SCMV screening

Sugarcane is a major cash crop of the world and occupies significant position in agricultural economy of Pakistan Study on correlation and path coefficient analysis on ratoon crop for cane yield and yield related traits in 20 accessions of sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum L.) was conducted in the field of the Department of Plant Breeding and Genetics, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, during the 2008-09.Analysis of variance indicated highly significant differences among the accessions for all the traits. Among the traits plant height, leaf area, dry matter contents, bagasse weight and cane yield had the positive and significant correlation with brix value at genotypic level. Molecular markers are useful for assessment of variation and phylogenetic relationships. Out of 30 fragments amplified with 15 primers used among the 10 sugarcane somaclones and a parent plant, only 3 bands were polymorphic while rest of the 27 bands were monomorphic. Therefore, it may be concluded from the present results that SSR markers can be used for the identification of somaclonal variation and the relationship between parents and somaclones.