Meiotic Chromosome Studies in the Diversity Diagnostics of Cyamopsis tetragonoloba Accessions – an Important Gum-Yielding Plant of Indian Thar Desert

Abstract

Cyamopsis tetragonoloba (Linn.) Taub (Fabaceae) is an important commercial crop of India. It is a multipurpose
including gum-yielding, drought tolerant, kharif pulse crop grown on light textured soils of arid and semi arid
regions. C. tetragonoloba is cytogenetically poorly understood. The 15 accessions originating from various
regions of India, were investigated to ascertain the nature and extent of genotype differentiation, if any, in the
meiotic details at diplotene, diakinesis, metaphase I, anaphase I and anaphase II. The accessions did show suitable
variations with respect to meiotic pairing properties and recombination index. Eight accessions, for example, were
well differentiated from the remaining seven accessions by the presence of quadrivalent(s) in otherwise diploid
species and so on. The present input will have an important role in the improvement programme of the crop