2.8.5. Transgenic Breeding for Manipulating Male Fertility

Creation of a new male-sterile type by genetic engineering strategies can rapidly provide alternative resources for hybrid seed production. Male-sterile transgenic broccoli was reported by Chen et al. via RNAi of the jasmonic acid pathway gene *BoiDAD1F* [150]. These transgenic plants showed male sterility under normal conditions but recovered to fertility when treated with exogenous JA and were thus suitable for utilization in a two-line seed production system [150]. Li et al. reported that the overexpression of a microRNA *bol-miR171b* in broccoli resulted in nearly complete male sterility and increased the chlorophyll content [151].
