Inductive Effects of Carbohydrates and Plant Regeneration via Anther Culture in Madagascar Periwinkle

Abstract

Anther culture has emerged as an alternative for traditional plant breeding practices for homozygosity development, which in the case of medical plants resulting in increased yield of phytoconstituents. The response of anthers during culture is governed by the various constituents of the nutrient media. The carbohydrate in the nutrient media plays a pivotal role as it acts as a source of carbon skeleton and maintains the osmoticum. In the present research, anthers of Catharanthus roseus (L.) G. Don. at early to late uninucleate stage of development were selected for the experiment. The anthers were cultured to evaluate the androgenic potential under the influence of different types and concentrations of carbohydrates viz. sucrose, glucose, maltose, and galactose. It was found that out of four carbohydrates except maltose, all performed best at 30 gm/l. The maximum rate of androgenic callus induction was noted in sucrose at 30 gm/l (69.66±1.52%). All the carbohydrates showed the least rate of calli induction at high concentration i.e. 70 gm/l. The embryo like structures were able to develop on the media supplemented with the combination of 1 mg/l BAP, 0.5 mg/l Kinetin and 0.5 mg/l NAA (13.33±5.77%). The ploidy analysis of randomly selected 30 calli and 10 leaves revealed that Catharanthus roseus has haploid regeneration tendencies and also possesses a tendency for spontaneous double haploid formation.