Hormone-induced caulogenesis in long-term tobacco cell lines and its effect on nuclear DNA content

Manipulation of exogenous auxin and cytokinin levels during sequential subculture in vitro has been used to induce caulogenesis in several long-term tobacco cell lines. Concurrently, tissue samples at various stages of caulogenesis have been examined for nuclear DNA content. While a variety of hormone regimes permitted caulogenesis, extremely high (122.95 μM) cytokinin levels and extremely low (0.285 μM) auxin levels generally gave optimal response. For three lines, caulogenesis was accompanied by a progressive decrease in nuclear DNA content beyond that due to the loss of polyploid cells. In one line, however, DNA content remained stable during regeneration, perhaps reflecting the acquisition of a stably adapted aneuploid karyotype. Both caulogenic response and amount of nuclear DNA were affected by changes in the culture medium. The progressive nature of the observed changes in DNA content is inconsistent with a single-step selection for euploid competent cells. Alternative models postulating either progressive selection for euploidy, or the regulation of karyotype are proposed to explain the results.