Cell suspension culture and plant regeneration of a Brazilian plantain, cultivar Terra

Lucymeire Souza Morais-Lino,Adilson Kenji Kobayashi,Janay Almeida Dos Santos-Serejo,Sebastião De Oliveira E Silva,José Raniere Ferreira De Santana

doi:10.1590/s0100-204x2008001000010

Abstract

The objective of this study was to establish cell suspension culture and plant regeneration via somatic embryogenesis of a Brazilian plantain, cultivar Terra Maranhão, AAB. Immature male flowers were used as explant source for generating highly embryogenic cultures 45 days after inoculation, which were used for establishment of cell suspension culture and multiplication of secondary somatic embryos. Five semisolid culture media were tested for differentiation, maturation, somatic embryos germination and for plant regeneration. An average of 558 plants per one milliliter of 5% SCV (settled cell volume) were regenerated in the MS medium, with 11.4 µM indolacetic acid and 2.2 µM 6-benzylaminopurine. Regenerated plants showed a normal development, and no visible somaclonal variation was observed in vitro. It is possible to regenerate plants from cell suspensions of plantain banana cultivar Terra using MS medium supplemented with 11.4 µM of IAA and 2.2 µM of BAP.

Highlights

Bananas and plantains (Musa spp.) are very important fruits for both social and economical reasons
The objective of this work was to establish a protocol of cell suspension culture and plant regeneration via somatic embryogenesis of the Brazilian plantain cultivar Terra Maranhão, AAB, applicable for largescale propagation, genetic transformation and somatic hybridization studies
The density of cell suspensions was adjusted to 5% of settled cell volume (SCV) by dilution of 1mL of settled cells into 19 mL of fresh medium

Summary

Introduction

Bananas and plantains (Musa spp.) are very important fruits for both social and economical reasons. They are worldwide cultivated in the tropical countries and constitute a staple food for nearly half a billion people. The Brazilian cultivar Terra is a French plantain consumed in stews or fried, mainly in the North and Northeast of the country. This cultivar is resistant to yellow sigatoka (Mycosphaerella musicola Leach) and fusarium wilt [Fusarium oxysporum f. The materials used for conventional propagation of banana and plantain include corms, large and small suckers, and sword suckers (Cronauer & Krikorian, 1984).

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