biologia plantarum

Biologia plantarum 19:173-182, 1977 | DOI: 10.1007/BF02923106

Combination of the mutation process with the sensitization and repair processes leading to increased frequencies of mutations in algal populations

J. Nečas¹

¹ Laboratory of Biotechnology, Institute of Microbiology, Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences, Třeboň, Czechoslovakia

The possibility of using a combination of the mutation process with the induction of the repair processes has been studied to increase the mutation frequencies in algal populations after UV-treatment. From this study it follows that the repair process induced by visible light is much more effective than the dark repair processes in the chlorococcal algae used. In these algae, visible light perhaps does not induce only those repair processes which affect their DNA, but probably also some recovery ones which affect their damaged structures and physiological functions. A suitable combination of the sensitization of algal cells by a DNA-base analogue before UV-treatment and the induction of the light repair and recovery processes resulted in a rather high increase of viable mutations in chlorococcal algae. These findings may be useful in the breeding of chlorococcal algae, which have no possibility of hybridization (except somatic).

Received: July 12, 1976; Published: May 1, 1977  Show citation