Media with Low Osmotic Pressures but Adequate Concentrations of Nutrients for Batch Culture of Tobacco Cells

Abstract

In this study we developed media for studying water relations of, and effects of salinity on batch cultured tobacco cells. The media supported exponential growth by cells throughout the culture periods and contain much lower concentrations of sugars, K+, NO3− and NH4+ than most traditional cell culture media. These nutrients are less concentrated in the medium used for experimental cultures (LNE) than in the medium used for stock cultures (LNS) and must be replenished during culture periods in the case of LNE medium. The media contain less than 45 mol m−3 of mineral nutrients and less than 60 mol m−3 glucose. Their osmotic pressure is less than 0.24 MPa and varied by less than 0.05 MPa (LNE) and 0.15MPa (LNS) during culture cycles. Growth of tobacco cells was not affected by these reductions in macronutrients and similar reductions could probably be made in other cell culture media without affecting growth rate although this would have to be verified for other species of cells.