A novel cost-effective medium for in vitro cultivation of Gentiana kurroo Royle using sugarcane bagasse

ABSTRACT

Objective: To develop a simple, cost-effective, and efficient medium by using sugarcane bagasse (SB) as abase material to replace the conventional Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium.Materials and Methods: Water extracts of SB along with some macronutrients and plant growth regulators weregelled with 0.7% agar-agar powder. Nodal segments of Gentiana kurroo were used as explants and inoculatedin the medium and placed in a growth chamber under standard conditions of light and temperature. Out of thetested combinations of plant growth regulators, 0.5 mg/l each of kinetin (KN) and 6-Benzylaminopurine (BAP)showed the excellent shoot multiplication and proliferation rate on the bagasse medium with the same potentialas on the MS medium with an average of 5–6 shoots/explant. In vitro rooting was obtained on half strength MSmedium supplemented with IBA (0.5 mg/l) with an average length of 7–8 cm and 20–25 roots/explant. Theplants were hardened in a mixture of clay loam and farmyard manure in 11(w/w) with 70%–80% survival ratewithout any phenotypic aberrations.Conclusion: The results from the present investigation indicate that SB can be used as a cost-effective substituteof MS medium for in vitro propagation of G. kurroo.