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The Analysis Of Genetically And Physiologically Complex Traits Using Ceratopteris: A Case Study Of Nacl-Tolerant Mutants, Thomas R. Warne, Dale L. Vogelien, Leslie G. Hickok

Faculty and Research Publications

Genetic and physiological complexities associated with salt tolerance in plants have limited progress in the analysis of specific factors responsible for the salt-tolerant phenotype. We have used the homosporous fern Ceratopteris richardii as a model plant to investigate the physiological basis of salinity tolerance by selecting single gene mutants that confer tolerance in the gametophyte generation. The unique genetic system of homosporous ferns permits the generation of mutants in a genetic background nearly isogenic to the wildtype, such that comparative studies with the wildtype can identify specific physiological responses associated with salt tolerance. One of these mutations, stl2, confers …