Question

Triticale is an example of
A. Intergeneric cross
B. Somatic hybridisation
C. Hyper aneuploidy
D. Hypo aneuploidy

Answer 1

When we talk about triticale, we refer to wheat. Triticale is a hybrid of wheat and rye that was prepared in the laboratory. The breeding is done so as to improve the quality of the wheat seed and nurture it with more nutrients.

Complete answer:
Triticale is a hybrid of wheat and rye that was first bred in laboratories in Scotland and Germany in the 19th century. It is commercially available as a second generation hybrid, i.e., a cross between two kinds of primary triticales. It yields high potential grain and improves its quality from the disease.
Let us study the above option being provided:
a. Intergeneric cross- It is the cross between the plants in two different genera in the same family. They are usually closely related so that pollination can take place to produce a hybrid, though the seeds of this hybrid are usually sterile. These hybrids help in combining genomes from distinctly different plants and to introduce traits not found in the parent genus. Most of the intergeneric hybrids are infertile.
b. Somatic hybridisation- During the last decade, protoplast fusion emerged as an important tool in the genetic variability in plants. It has resulted in the production of somatic hybrids in large numbers of crops. In this, the protoplast is isolated from different plants and then it is fused into homozygous plants.
c. Hyper aneuploidy- Allosome is a chromosome that is different from the rest of the chromosome with respect to size as well as structure. When we talk about hyper aneuploidy there is an increase in either X chromosomes or Y chromosomes.
d. Hypo aneuploidy- It also deals with the chromosome number count in the cells of the living organisms. In this, the chromosomes are usually lost, which is either X and Y.
Triticale is a hybrid or intergeneric cross that is made by the crossing of wheat and rye. When crossing is done, wheat is referred to as the female parent and rye as the male parent. The resultant hybrids are sterile, so they must be treated with colchicine to induce polyploidy in them. It is done so to improve the food production and nutrition in developing countries.

So, the correct answer is option A, Intergeneric cross.

Note-
Alexander Wilson was the first person to manage to manually fertilize female wheat flowers with male rye pollen. He found that the resulting plants were sterile in the same way as horse and donkey. Later after 15 years, a partial hybrid was produced by Wilhelm Rimpau by the process of germination.