Primary callus as source of totipotent barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) protoplasts.

Primary callus of barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) derived from scutella (cv. 'Dissa') and anthers (cv. 'Igri') was used for protoplast isolation and plant regeneration. The protoplasts were embedded in agarose and cultured with nurse cells. The plating efficiency varied from 0.1% to 0.7%. Shoots regenerated from the developing callus. Plantlets were transferred to soil and cultivated in the greenhouse three to five months after protoplast isolation. All plants were normal in morphology, and most of them flowered and set seeds.