EMS-induced Mutagenesis for C18 Unsaturated Fatty Acids in Rapeseed (Brassica napus L.)

Rapeseed (Brassica napus L.) oil with high oleic acid content is of great interest for both food and non-food uses. The 'Tamla' variety, characterized by oleic acid content of approximately 69%, was treated with 1% ethyl methane sulfonate (EMS) to induce mutations in the fatty acid biosynthesis pathway. M1 plants were selfed and subsequent generations (M2, M3, and M4 mutants) were analyzed to identify mutants having increased levels of oleic acid. M2 mutants showed oleic acid content ranging from 13.5% to 76.9% with some mutants (TR-458 and TR-544) having up to 74.7% and 76.9% oleic acid, which was an increase of nearly 5% and 7%, respectively, compared to untreated cv 'Tamla'. We selected two M3 mutants with >75% oleic acid content. One mutant (TR-458-2) had increased oleic acid (75.9%) and decreased linoleic acid (12.5%) and linolenic acid (4.4%) contents. The other (TR-544-1) showed increased oleic acid content (75.7%) and decreased linoleic acid (13.5%) and linolenic acid (3.3%) contents. The accumulation or reduction of oleic acid content in the selected M4 mutants was also accompanied by a simultaneous decrease or increase in linoleic and linolenic acid contents. The high-oleic lines could be utilized further in breeding programs for improvement of rapeseed oil quality.