biologia plantarum

Biologia plantarum 50:477-480, 2006 | DOI: 10.1007/s10535-006-0075-4

Responses of two Prunus rootstocks to KCl induced salinity in vitro

T. E. Sotiropoulos^1,*, K. N. Dimassi², V. Tsirakoglou², I. N. Therios²

¹ Pomology Institute, N.AG.RE.F., Naoussa, Greece

² Department of Horticulture, Laboratory of Pomology, Aristotle University, Thessaloniki, Greece

The in vitro response of two Prunus rootstocks: GF 677 (Prunus persica × Prunus amygdalus), and Nemared (Prunus persica) to increasing concentrations of KCl of the culture medium was studied. Shoots were grown in vitro for 8 weeks on an Murashige and Skoog medium supplemented with 0, 5, 10, 15, 20, 40 or 80 mM KCl. By increasing KCl concentration from 0 to 40 mM, the number of shoots per explant was not significantly affected for both rootstocks. However, Nemared rootstock formed more shoots per explant than GF 677 under respective KCl concentrations of the medium. Inclusion of 80 mM KCl in the medium resulted in a reduction of growth of both rootstocks. Sodium, Fe, Mn, and Zn concentration in tissues of Nemared rootstock were significantly higher than the respective values of GF 677.

Keywords: cell proliferation; ion toxicity; micropropagation

Subjects: in vitro culture, micropropagation, propagation; in vitro culture, regeneration, proliferation, differentiation; nutrient medium, Murashige and Skoog; Prunus persica × Prunus amygdalus; rootstock

Received: January 21, 2005; Accepted: April 14, 2005; Published: September 1, 2006  Show citation