The objective of this research was to study the meiotic behavior and pollen viability in four accessions of species Capsicum annuum and Capsicum baccatum. In all accessions, twelve bivalents were observed, confirming the number and ploidy level reported in the literature for these species. The results showed a normal cell division although some abnormalities had been detected, as early chromosome migration at metaphases I and II, later chromosomes at anaphase I and asynchronous division. The studied accessions presented a meiotic index (MI) that varied from 75.6 to 93.6% and the pollen viability in all accessions was higher than 90%, demonstrating that the meiotic irregularities observed didn't affect their viability.
peppers; meiotic irregularities; pollen grain; meiotic index
