Micropropagation of Salacia reticulata - an Endangered Medicinal Plant

Abstract

An efficient protocol of axillary bud proliferation and direct organogenesis has been developed for Salacia reticulata, a highly important medicinal plant. Over-exploitation for its antidiabetic and antioxidant properties concentrated in roots and stem has caused it to be endangered, thereby the need for its conservation. Propagation of S. reticulata in vitro is a promising way for its conservation. To develop the micropropagation protocol, the germplasm was screened for selection of a suitable ecotype with high content of mangiferin estimated with High Performance Liquid Chromatography technique. Nodal segments were cultured on MS supplemented with different growth regulators. The most efficient shoot multiplication was obtained with the supplementation of BA and IAA (3.5 + 0.5 mg/l). Elongation of the micro-shoots was achieved by subculture every 20 days. The elongated micro-shoots were efficiently rooted in vitro on half strength MS supplemented with IBA. Plantlets were successfully established in the soil in 6 - 8 weeks and were morphologically similar to those of the source plant. The protocols developed presently for direct shoot regeneration and root-induction could be successfully applied for development of high quality planting stocks. D. O. I. http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/ptcb.v23i2.17523 Plant Tissue Cult. & Biotech. 23(2): 221-229, 2013 (December)

Morphological and Qualitative Phytochemical Comparison of Selected <em>Salacia</em> Species in Lowland Wet Zone of Sri Lanka

“…These Salacia are used to treat illnesses in ayurvedic medicine in Sri Lanka (Arunakumara and Subasinghe, 2010). All the Salacia species are more or less morphologically similar except for a few characters as reported by Dhanasiri et al (2013).…”

Multiple shoot regeneration, establishment of callus and cell suspension cultures in Salacia macrosperma Wight

“…S. macrosperma is one such plant that is facing the risks for survivability in their natural habitat. However, so many micropropagation works have been carried out in the same genus of other species by Dhanasri et al (2013) in S. reticulata and Deepak et al (2015) in S. oblonga. The in vitro micropropagation through tissue culture is very difficult for Salacia species due to their recalcitrant nature (Deepa & Narmada, 2010).…”

Assessing genetic diversity and DNA barcodes efficiency of Salacia and related species from Western Ghats, Karnataka

“…Within Salacia species, S. macrosperma has the highest percentage of polymorphic of 84.27% followed by S. fruticosa (48.31%) and S. oblonga. Since some of the species of Salacia are endangered, the effort to conserve germplasm by micropropagation of S. chinensis [15], S. reticulata [16], and S. oblonga [17] has been carried out. Molecular analysis suggests that S. chinensis has the lowest variation within the species, making it a suitable candidate for large-scale micropropagation, conservation, and alternative for other endangered species of Salacia.…”

“…Genetic relatedness among Salacia species and related genus was studied by Unweighted Pair Group Method with Arithmetic (UPGMA) averages cluster analysis using NTSYSpc software 2.02e [15]. For parametric calculation, software POPGENE 1.31 [16] was used. Principal Coordinates Analysis (PCoA) was done using GenAlEx 6.51b2 [17].…”