No.

4511 April 14, 1956 NATURE 709

Heat Treatment and Tissue Culture as a
means of freeing Potatoes from Virus Y
A NUMBER of workers have shown an effect of
high temperatures on plant viruses. By heat treat-
ment, potato tubers have been freed from leafroll 1
and witches'-broom 2 ; but as yet there has been no
reported success with heat treatment as a means of
freeing potatoes from virus Y.
The most important potato variety grown in New
Zealand, Aucklander Short Top, has been shown
to be 100 per cent infected with potato viruses
X and Y 3 • Therefore, efforts have been directed
towards eliminating virus from selected tubers, which
would then become the foundation for improved
seed stocks.
'l'able 1
Apices
Treatment Material detached surviving from virus Y
38° C. 28 days 3 tubers 16
38° C. 21 1 14
38° C. 15 " 2 " 10
38° C. 7 " 2 " 12
35° C. 7 " 1 " 10
35° C. 7 " 2 " 7 3
35° C. 16 " 9 cltltures 9 6
35° C. 14 " 2 2 1
" "
Tubers were sprouted in darkness and when sprouts
were 1-2 cm. long, the tubers were removed to
incubators kept at either 35° C. or 38° C. for varying
periods (Table I). After treatment, the terminal
5 mm. of each sprout was detached and surface-
sterilized with a 25 per cent solution of commercial
sodium hypochlorite with the addition of a small
amount of detergent. The shoot tips were recovered
in test-tubes on White's media• containing 0·7 per
cent agar with the addition of pantothenic acid 5 •
Cultures were placed in a glasshouse. When sufficient
growth had been made, the rooted plantlets were
transferred to John Innes compost in pots. They
were each tested at least twice for virus content-
when 2-3 in. high and when fully grown~by sap
inoculation to Datura stramonium L. and Nicotiana
tabaciim L. (var. White Burley). If symptoms of
virus Y failed to develop on the tobacco plants, they
were re-inoculated with a severe strain of virus Y
to test for the presence of mild strains.
In another experiment, sprout tips were established
in culture under glasshouse conditions and later
transferred to the incubator at 35° C. During treat-
Fig. 1. Left : virus X only ; right : viruses X
ment, these cultures developed some new etiolated
growth which was removed and recovered in culture.
Although in most cases heat-treated tubers failed
to germinate when planted, all those that did proved
to be infected with viruses X and Y. However, of
eighty apices detached, twenty-seven survived for
testing. All showed virus X reaction, but eleven
plants failed to give a virus Y reaction.
The plants which were apparently free from virus Y
will have to be tested over an extended period before
they can be definitely regarded as free. However,
under glasshouse conditions, they are much more
vigorous than the plants infected with virus X and Y
(Fig. I).
Similar tuber treatments have been carried out on
another important variety, Dakota Red, which is
wholly infected with virus X. All of thirty-four
surviving plants reacted at first test on D. stramonium.
No. No. free
This work is being extended.
A. D. THOMSON
6 0
Crop Research Division,
2 0 Department of Scientific and Industrial Research_
0 0 Lincoln, New Zealand.
7 4
2 1 Oct. 7.
0
5 1
Kassanis, B., Nature, 164, 881 (1949).
1 'Kunkel, L. 0., Proc. Amer. Phil. Soc., 86, 470 (1943).
'Procter, C. H., N.Z. J. Sci. Tech., A, 34, 192 (1952).
• White, P.R., "A Handbook of Plant Tissue Culture" (Jaques Cattell,
Lancaster, Pa., 1943).
6
Barker, W. G., Science, 118, 384 (1953).
Diffusion of a New Habit among
Greenfinches
Daphne mezereum L. is a compact, pink, pre-vernal
shrub, smothered with a profusion of fragrant blossom
in March or earlier, and often planted near a living-
room window to cheer one up at that season. It has
a natural temperate distribution from the Atlantic
to the Altai Mountains 1 • Chloris chloris L., the green-
finch, has a distribution which, apart from intro-
ductions, is somewhat similar•. Thus the two species
have probably shared a large geographical area for
son1e ten thousand years, apart from earlier Pleisto-
cene migrations. On the borders of calcareous woods
there is an overlap between their natural habitats,
and they have been together in gardens for several
centuries. During the past fifty years no distinctive
association between the two species appears to have
been reported 2 , 3 •
The fruit of D. mezereum is a IO-mm. scarlet drupe,
with an internal structure like that of the plum,
Prunus. It is effectively adapted to alimentary
dispersal by such birds as Turdus merula L., the
blackbird. But in recent years• certain greenfinches
have obtained a new source of nutrition, at the same
time wrecking the life-cycle of Daphne. A pair of
birds, usually, will visit and strip the bush in May
or early June, and while t,he fruits are still green.
They can then crack the immature stones and devour
the large seed. Often, no doubt, this considerably
assists the feeding of the first brood of nestlings 2 ,•.
Preliminary reports 6 show that this new behaviour
is increasing rapidly in frequency, with 42 per cent
of cases occurring only within the last two seasons.
I should be very grateful for further information, by
postcard, about: (a) the location of any D. mezereum
bush under observation ; (b) whether or not this
despoliation has occurred, and (c) the year of first
+Y occurrence.

© 1956 Nature Publishing Group