Maternal inheritance of male sterility in the progeny of a natural hybrid between <italic>Cajanus lineatus</italic> and <italic>C. cajan</italic>.

Abstract: Adoption of pigeonpea hybrids in central and southern India is showing high impact with on‐farm yield advantages of >30%. The hybrid pigeonpea technology, the first in any legume crop, is based on a cytoplasmic‐nuclear male‐sterility (CMS) system. For a long‐term sustainability of hybrid programme, it is imperative that both nuclear diversity and cytoplasmic diversity are maintained among hybrid parents. In this context, a continuous search for new CMS‐inducing cytoplasms is necessary. This paper reports detection of maternal inheritance of male sterility in the progeny derived from a natural hybrid between a wild relative [<italic>Cajanus lineatus</italic> (W. & A.) Maesen comb. nov.] of pigeonpea and an unknown pigeonpea [<italic>Cajanus cajan</italic> (L.) Millsp.] genotype. In the present study, the male sterility was maintained up to BC7F1 generation by an advanced breeding pigeonpea line ICPL 99044. This male sterility inducing cytoplasm of <italic>C. lineatus</italic> was tagged as A6. In future, this CMS genetic stock can be used to develop a range of new pigeonpea hybrids with high yield and adaptation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]