In vitro propagation and genetic fidelity study of plant regenerated from inverted hypocotyl explants of eggplant (Solanum melongena L.) cv. Arka Shirish.

Genetic variation due to somaclonal variation
in micropropagated plants is a beneficial phenomenon for
crop improvement. Genetic integrity of the plants derived
through micropropagation becomes crucial if genetic
transformation studies have to be carried out. Somaclonal
variation in tissue culture is a common phenomenon which
makes it mandatory to check for genetic stability of plants.
Hypocotyl explants of Solanum melongena L. cv. Arka
Shirish inoculated with inverted polarity in MS media
supplemented with 0.5 mg L-1 thidiazuron (TDZ) gave
maximum number of shoot buds. Elongation of the shoot
buds was achieved on MS medium supplemented with
0.5 mg L-1 2, 3, 5-triiodobenzoic acid (TIBA) and
0.1 mg L-1 gibberellic acid (GA3). The elongated shoots
were rooted in MS with 1 mg L-1 indole-3-butyric acid
(IBA), and the rooted plants were hardened in the greenhouse.
Morphological characteristics were similar in both
seed-propagated and micropropagated plants. Random
amplified polymorphic DNA analysis carried out with 10
primers for genetic stability studies of the regenerated
plants generated 96 scorable bands with a total of 1,056
bands for the primers. Comparison of the bands with the
mother plant revealed the monomorphic nature and true-totype
clones. The above regeneration protocol will be useful
for micropropagation and genetic transformation studies of
S. melongena L. cv. Arka Shirish.