Somatic mutation

A genetic change that arises in a non-reproductive cell and is passed to some of its descendants. In plants, it can produce a distinct trait in part of an otherwise unchanged organism.

DNA replication: The cellular process that copies a DNA molecule before cell division. Copying errors during replication can introduce mutations into somatic cells.
Bud sport: A plant shoot or bud that develops a heritable trait different from the rest of its plant. Bud sports are visible outcomes of mutations in somatic plant cells.
Germline mutation: A genetic change in a reproductive cell lineage that can be transmitted to offspring. Somatic mutations affect non-reproductive cells, whereas germline mutations can pass between generations.
Clonal plant: A plant composed of genetically similar modules produced by vegetative growth or asexual reproduction. Mutations can accumulate among modules, making a clone less genetically uniform than it began.
DNA repair: Cellular processes that detect and correct damage or copying errors in DNA. Repair systems prevent many somatic mutations from becoming permanent.
Grafting: A horticultural technique that joins plant tissues so they grow as one plant. Grafting can preserve a desirable mutant shoot as part of a cultivated plant.
Meiosis: A type of cell division that produces haploid reproductive cells from diploid cells. Meiosis belongs to reproductive lineages, unlike the mitotic lineages where somatic mutations arise.
Cancer: A group of diseases in which abnormal cells grow and divide uncontrollably. In animals, accumulated somatic mutations can contribute to cancer development.
Mitosis: The process by which a eukaryotic cell divides its nucleus into two genetically similar nuclei. Descendants of a mutated cell can inherit the change through repeated mitoses.
Plant propagation: The production of new plants through sexual or asexual reproduction. Asexual propagation can multiply a plant carrying a useful somatic mutation.

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