A method for selection of biochemical mutants of Neurospora

Numerous investigations in recent-years have firmly established the value of mutants of the mold Neurospora as tools for research in biochemistry and genetics.(1,5,6) Although various means have been used for inducing mutations,(4,5,6) the technique of isolation as described by Beadle and Tatum(4) has been used by most investigators. This method involves isolation of single ascospores, one from each perithecium, derived from a cross of which one parent was treated. By this method at least 97 per cent of the cultures obtained from the single spore isolations are unchanged wild type strains. In order to obtain specific mutants or a diversity of mutants, it is therefore necessary to isolate a very large number of single ascospores