KRAMER: DISCUSSION OF SESSION V 491 



Ross: There is a development which could have a tremendous impact 

 on mutation genetics and for that reason should be brought to the 

 attention of this symposium. Dr. F. C. Steward of Cornell has been suc- 

 cessful in obtaining free-cell cultures and plants from these. This holds 

 the possibility of placing the study of genetics of higher plants on the 

 cellular basis, perhaps, even on the same basis as bacterial genetics. 



A second development, also out of this research, is the observation 

 by Dr. J. Mitra and Doctor Steward of what appears to be an excellent 

 exhibition of somatic reduction in cell cultures of Haplopappus. This 

 observation of somatic reduction in Haplopappus suggests that it may 

 also have occurred in sorghum and, thus, explain the homozygous nature 

 of mutants occurring in certain varieties of sorghum as observed by 

 our group at South Dakota State College. 



