Skip to main content
ARS Home » Southeast Area » Fort Pierce, Florida » U.S. Horticultural Research Laboratory » Subtropical Insects and Horticulture Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #307008
Title: Effect of various factors on shoot regeneration from citrus epicotyl explants

Author
item Niedz, Randall
item ALBANO, JOSEPH - Former ARS Employee
item MARUTANI-HERT, MIZURI - Former ARS Employee

Submitted to: Journal of Applied Horticulture
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/1/2015
Publication Date: 10/16/2015
Citation: Niedz, R.P., Albano, J.P., Marutani-Hert, M. 2015. Effect of various factors on shoot regeneration from citrus epicotyl explants. Journal of Applied Horticulture. 17(2)121-128.

Interpretive Summary: We report the results from a series of experiments that tested the effects of various treatments reported in the plant tissue culture literature on the production of shoots in tissue culture. The treatments tested included 1) the source of the water, 2) the type of gelling agent used, 3) how the plant part is inserted into the culture medium, 4) the size of the seed, 5) the intensity of the light in the culture chamber, 6) malachite green, 7) nonionic surfactants, and 8) sodium sulfate. Tap water resulted in the most shoots compared to the other 5 sources, suggesting a mineral nutrient effect. Explants inserted into the medium produced more shoots than those cultured on the surface, presumably because of better exposure to water and nutrients. Seed size, light intensity, malachite green, and sodium sulfate had no effect on the number of shoots regenerated.

Technical Abstract: The effect of various treatments on shoot organogenesis from seedling epicotyl explants from various scion and rootstock polyembryonic citrus types was determined. Treatments included water source, gelling agent, explant insertion, seed size, light intensity, malachite green, nonionic surfactants, and sodium sulfate. Tap water, with the highest levels of SO42-, Ca2+, K+, Mg2+, and Na+, resulted in the most shoots compared to the other 5 sources, suggesting a mineral nutrient effect. Carrageenan produced fewer shoots than agar and gellan gum. Explants inserted into the medium produced more shoots than those cultured on the surface, presumably because of better exposure to water and nutrients. Seed size, light intensity, malachite green, and sodium sulfate had no effect on the number of shoots regenerated. Triton X-100 at 0.1% resulted in significantly fewer shoots; otherwise, nonionic surfactants had no effect.