Description of morphological characters of （形态特征的描述）.pdfVIP

Description of morphological characters of lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) genetic resources E. Křístková, I. Doležalová, A. Lebeda, V. Vinter, A. Novotná Department of Botany, Faculty of Science, Palacký University in Olomouc, Olomouc-Holice, Czech Republic AbstrAct: Lettuce (Lactuca sativa) is the most important crop in the group of leafy vegetables. It is characterized by considerable morphological and genetic variation. The crop comprises seven main groups of cultivars (including oilseed lettuce) differing phenotypically; they are usually described as morphotypes. Lettuce breeding is primarilly focused on various morphological features and resistance against diseases and pests. The accurate description of let- tuce germplasm provides basic information useful for lettuce breeders. The construction of a lettuce descriptor list has been stimulated by the international genebank community. This list consists of 55 descriptors with 15 elucidated by figures. It provides a tool for detailed characterization of and discrimination within the intraspecific variation of L. sativa, verification of old varieties, and identification of putative duplicates and gaps in germplasm collections. These descriptors, along with descriptors of wild Lactuca species, provide an efficient analytical tool for studying the complex morphological variability of this genus and relationships among the species. Keywords: biology; characterization; descriptors; gene bank collections; gene pool; germplasm conservation; morpho- types; origin; regeneration; resistance; taxonomy; variability Lactuca sativa L. (Asteraceae) is considered as Resources Institute (IPGRI), established in 1974. the most important vegetable in the group of leafy Since 1 December 2006, IPGRI and the International vegetables. It is almost exclusively used as a fresh Network for the Improvement of Banana and Plan- vegetable in salads, but some forms are als