Abstract
Litchi chinensis sonn.) ranks second after mango amongst the most important fruit crops cultivated worldwide. Litchi is a very valuable crop throughout the world because it is a table fruit and wines are also produced from it. The existing cultivars are highly polyploidy and heterozygous in nature. It is propagated through air layering and marcottage methods and storability is very low. Synthetic seeds can be stored for a long time and its genetic constitution could remain the same. For germplasm maintenance and clonal propagation, synthetic seeds can be used. Somatic embryogenesis has been reported from anther or embryogenic suspension culture in various species of litchi. Regeneration via organogenesis and somatic embryogenesis from zygotic embryos has also been reported in certain species. Developing a methodology for getting somatic embryogenesis with a high frequency from zygotic embryos which is available once in a year, would be particularly useful for genetic improvement of litchi. Cotyledonary stage somatic embryos developed from zygotic embryos were encapsulated in 2% alginate gel. The encapsulated somatic embryos (ESEs) germinated successfully on 0.7% agar medium containing 3% sucrose concentration in NN basal medium (half strength of major and minor salts) with 1 mg·l-1 of gibbrellic acid. Percentage germination and plantlet development for ESEs was higher than that of non encapsulated embryos (NSEs). In comparison to different hormones, gibberellic acid has a significant influence on the germination rate of ESEs after one week of dehydration was seen maximum at 9% sucrose and abscisic acid (1 mg·l-1) in half strength of major and minor salts in Nitsch and Nitsch medium resulting in extended storage up to 90 days without loss in germination potential and capability to regenerate into plantlets. Normally developed plantlets regenerated from ESEs were successfully adapted to soil to obtain a full grown plant.
Highlights
Litchi (Litchi chinensis Sonn.) of the family Sapindaceae is tropical tree known for its delicious fruits
Primary somatic embryos were induced from zygotic embryos which were pre-soaked in citric acid (2 g∙l−1) for 1 h and cultured on MS1 medium consisted of MS [41] salts and B5 [42] vitamins with 2, 4-D (2 mg∙l−1), 50 g∙l−1 sucrose, and supplemented with 2 g∙l−1 Ascorbic acid and 3 g∙l−1 Citric acid and 8 g∙l−1 agar
Primary somatic embryos were generated from zygotic embryos when cultured on MS1 medium, they were subcultured on either NN basal or NN medium supplemented with IBA and within 4 - 6 weeks embryogenic callus was formed (Figure 1(a)), which differentiated into many globular to cotyledonary stage secondary embryos
Summary
Litchi (Litchi chinensis Sonn.) of the family Sapindaceae is tropical tree known for its delicious fruits. As soon as aril is removed the moisture content decreases and seeds lost the ability of germination. An important application of somatic embryos is their use in the production of synthetic seeds [16]. The synthetic seed technology is best suited for the maintenance of genetic constitution of regenerated plants and can be stored for a long time. The application of synthetic seed technology has been demonstrated for many plant species [34]-[38] and the role of abscisic acid (ABA) is implicated as a controlling factor for germination and dormancy in somatic embryos and seeds [39] [40]. We report the parameters for the production of somatic embryos in litchi, their encapsulation, germination and regeneration into plantlets
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