Induced mutagenesis is a common and promising method for screening for new crops with improved properties. This title introduces the different methods and then focuses on the screening, detection and analysis of the novel mutations. Written by a global team of authors the book is an indispensable tool for all scientists working on crop breeding in industry and academia.

This paper provides guidelines for new high-throughput screening methods – both phenotypic and genotypic – to enable the detection of rare mutant traits, and reviews techniques for increasing the efficiency of crop mutation breeding.

Mutation detection is increasingly undertaken in a wide spectrum of research areas: in medicine it is fundamental in isolating disease genes and diagnbosis, and is especially important in cancer research; in biology, commercially important genes can be identified by the mutations they contain. But mutation detection is time-consuming and expensive. This volume offers the latest tried and tested protocols for a range of detection methods, from the labs of the leading researchers in the field.

This book is open access under a CC BY-NC 2.5 license. This book offers 19 detailed protocols on the use of induced mutations in crop breeding and functional genomics studies, which cover topics including chemical and physical mutagenesis, phenotypic screening methods, traditional TILLING and TILLING by sequencing, doubled haploidy, targeted genome editing, and low-cost methods for the molecular characterization of mutant plants that are suitable for laboratories in developing countries. The collection of protocols equips users with the techniques they need in order to start a program on mutation breeding or functional genomics using both forward and reverse-genetic approaches. Methods are provided for seed and vegetatively propagated crops (e.g. banana, barley, cassava, jatropha, rice) and can be adapted for use in other species.

Ornamental plants are economically important worldwide. Both growers and consumers ask continuously for new, improved varieties. Although there are numerous ornamental species, ornamental plant breeding and plant breeding research is mainly limited to some major species. This book focuses on the recent advances and achievements in ornamental plant breeding. The first part of the book focuses on plant traits and breeding techniques that are typical for ornamental plants. Eminent research groups write these general chapters. For plant traits like flower colour or shape, breeding for disease resistance and vase or shelf life are reviewed. General technical plant breeding chapters deal with mutation breeding, polyploidisation, in vitro breeding techniques and new developments in molecular techniques. The second part of the book consists of crop-specific chapters. Here all economically major ornamental species are handled together with selected representative species from different plant groups (cut flowers, pot plants, woody ornamental plants). In these crop-specific chapters, the main focus is on recent scientific achievements over the last decade.

This is the newest title in the successful Molecular Plant Biology Handbook Series. Just like the other titles in the series this new book presents an excellent overview of different approaches and techniques in Metabolomics. Contributors are either from ivy-league research institutions or from companies developing new technologies in this dynamic and fast-growing field. With its approach to introduce current techniques in plant metabolomics to a wider audience and with many labs and companies considering to introduce metabolomics for their research, the title meets a growing market. The Kahl books are in addition a trusted brand for the plant science community and have always sold above expectations.

In this incisive, concise overview of this booming field, the editors -- two of the leading figures in the field with a proven track record -- combine their expertise to provide an invaluable reference on the topic. Following a treatment of transcriptome analysis, the book goes on to discuss replacement and mutation analysis, gene silencing and computational analysis. The whole is rounded off with a look at emerging technologies. Each chapter is accompanied by a concise overview, helping readers to quickly identify topics of interest, while important, carefully selected words and concepts are explained in a handy glossary. Equally accessible to both experienced scientists and newcomers to the field.