STANDARDIZATION OF in-vitro REGENERATION FOR Gynura procumbens (LOUR.) MERR

The present study with the in vitro regeneration of Gynura procumbens L. was carried out at the Plant Biotechnology Laboratory, Department of Horticulture, Patuakhali Science and Technology University (PSTU) from July 2016 to April 2017 to develop a standardized low-cost protocol for the organogenesis of this species. In this study, the intermodal segment was used as the explant, and the Germplasm pond water + Agar 7g+ Sucrose 30g, Tarangotanu pond water + Agar 7g+ Sucrose 30g, ¼ MS, 1/2 MS, and MS medium were used as the treatments. Table sugar was used as an alternative source of carbon while the modified conventional MS medium (cm) was used as the control. The maximum shoot initiation percentage (73.64), the highest number of shoots per plantlet (12.45), and the maximum shoot length (3.19 cm) at 45 DAC were recorded with the full strength of MS medium. The minimum days (13.69) required for shoot initiation, the highest number of leaves per shoot (12.52) were recorded from the ¼ strength of MS medium. On the other hand, the minimum days (12.30) for root initiation and the maximum root initiation percentage (83.03), the highest number of roots per plantlet (10.47), and the maximum root length (6.21 cm) were obtained from the medium contained Germplasm pond-water. For the acclimatization, the rooted plantlets were planted in polybags containing a mixture of garden soil, sand, and cow dung (1:1:1). The Germplasm pond water media treated plantlet showed the highest survivability (80.53%) which also gave the best economic return (BCR). This study has shown that it is possible to reduce the cost of its tissue culture by adopting alternative nutrient sources with potential uses for other herbaceous plants.