Biological Significance of Incompatibility

Both interspecific and intraspecific incompatibility determines the degree of inbreeding and out breeding of plants. Self-incompatibility is the natural way to circumvent the extensive selfing that promotes homozygous individuals and eventual inbreeding depression (accumulation of lethal recessives).

Sexual incompatibility also serves as a hindrance in crop improvement programmes. Until the technique of androgenic haploidy was evolved, continuous self pollination was the only way to obtain homozygous individuals. Even now where haploid production is not possible through another culture, a successful approach can only be through self- pollination. Even interspecific incompatibility prevents distant hybridization. Therefore, various methods have now been adopted to overcome the inter-and intra-specific incompatibility.