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In a survey of the commercial greenhouse production of Saintpaulia sp. in Iran, plants with
various types of leaf variegation patterns were collected. A recognition of types of variegated
patterns in selected plants was accomplished though a comparison of morphological differences
in their such variegation patterns, as: 1-The locations in which the chlorophyll-free cells were
developed, 2-How the chlorophyll-free cells were outspreaded, distributed and dispersed on
each leaf, and 3-The steady state of variegated (chlorophyll-free) tissues which were distributed
throughout the plant. An identification guideline for leaf variegation patterns in Saintpaulia
adopted from a reliable and authoritative source of reference was used to recognize the various
patterns of variegation. In subsequent experiments, leaf tissues segments were prepared from a
pink fantasy-flowered semi-miniature Saintpaulia to be cultured on a modified MS basal
medium containing BA and IAA hormones for callus proliferation. This was done to induce
somaclonal variation to obtain valuable mutants for further study and evaluation. Obtained
calluses were subcultured 4-6 times during a six months period after initiation of the
experiment, and then transferred to shoot induction medium for shoot regeneration. One thusand
seven hundred and fifty new plants were produced from the proliferated calluses, which were
then studied and evaluated for detecting the modified morphological characters. In the next
stage, the selected cultivars and obtained variants were propagated in perlite medium through
cuttings, and under greenhouse conditions to demonstrate their stability in the favored traits.
Among plantlets originated from subcultured calluses, various types of leaf chimeras, variegated
foliage patterns and some pink fantasy blossoms with various intensities of violet dots were also
observed. Investigation and evaluation of somaclonal variation induced variants demonstrated
that it is likely to produce various types of leaf chimeras and variegated foliage patterns to
improve morphological traits in African violet. Leaf variation characteristics in vegetative
progenies that resulted from propagation through cutting of whole chimeral variants were
completely eliminated because of single-cell epidermal origin of new shoots, whereas
variegation characteristics of variegated variants were stable throughout the one vegetative
generation. Mutated traits of flower pigment variants were also stable throughout the one
vegetative generation. Altogether, use of tissue culture technique to develop somaclonal
variations could result in revealing the genetic potential of African violet to create and improve
the traits.