INHERITANCE OF COLOUR PATTERNS IN COWPEA (VIGNA UNGUICULATA L. WALP.)

Abstract

The inheritance patterns of the contrasting petal colour, purple and white; pod colour, purple and straw-white; and shoot colour, purple and green were studied. Analysis of the F2 and backcross populations showed that petal colour is governed by one allelic pair WW, while pod and shoot colours appear to be determined pleiotropically by two allelic pairs, PrPr and GrGr, interacting in as recessive suppressors. The PrPr gene seems to be a set of localized alleles that determine the different purplecolourintensitieson pods. Deep purple pods are produced by the genotype PrPr; light purple by Prpr; and straw-white pods by prpr. Because prpr is capable of suppressing G,... (recessive suppressor) the genotypes prpr Gr- produced normal green shoots or with very mild streaks of anthocyanin and strawwhite pods. The genotypes Pr- Gr-, Pr-grgr and prprgrgrproduced pigmented shoots and pods.