Abstract
Pelargonium sidoides is a high value medicinal plant endemic to South Africa and the Lesotho Highlands. Establishing an efficient regeneration system through somatic embryogenesis is necessary for its conservation. An efficient reproducible protocol for in vitro plant regeneration via somatic embryogenesis of Pelargonium sidoides, an important medicinal plant, is reported for the first time. Embryogenic callus was obtained on Murashige and Skoog (MS) basal medium supplemented with 2.0 mg L−1 picloram, 0.5 mg L−1 thidiazuron and 20 mg L−1 glutamine. Different developmental stages of somatic embryos (SEs: globular embryos, heart shaped embryos, torpedo shaped embryos and cotyledon embryo with radicle) were directly obtained and further matured from embryogenic callus by subsequent subculture on the same medium. The highest frequency of somatic embryos (25.89 ± 1.50) was recovered after 6 weeks. Scanning electron microscopic (SEM) analysis revealed the presence of embryogenic cell clusters that formed cotyledonary embryos. Mature somatic embryos germinated and developed into plantlets after 4 weeks on half-strength MS medium. High plant regeneration frequency (94.4 %) was achieved on half-strength MS medium supplemented with 1.0 mg L−1 gibberellic acid. Rooted plantlets were successfully acclimatized in the greenhouse with a survival rate of 90 %. The protocol developed would be helpful in reducing stress on natural habitats, provide a system for germplasm conservation, regeneration of large numbers of high value clonal plants for commercial production, the isolation of bioactive compounds and genetic transformational studies.
Similar content being viewed by others
Abbreviations
- GA3 :
-
Gibberellic acid
- MS:
-
Murashige and Skoog medium
- PGRs:
-
Plant growth regulators
- PPF:
-
Photosynthetic photon flux
- SEs:
-
Somatic embryos
- SEM:
-
Scanning electron microscopy
- TDZ:
-
Thidiazuron
References
Aderkas P, Rohr R, Sundberg B, Gutmann M, Be Boux ND, Lelu MA (2002) Abscisic acid and its influence on development of the embryonal root cap, storage product and secondary metabolite accumulation in hybrid larch somatic embryos. Plant Cell Tissue Organ Cult 69:111–120
Baskaran P, Jayabalan N (2009) In vitro propagation of Psoralea corylifolia L. by somatic embryogenesis in cell suspension culture. Acta Physiol Plant 31:1119–1127
Baskaran P, Van Staden J (2012) Somatic embryogenesis of Merwilla plumbea (Lindl.) Speta. Plant Cell Tissue Organ Cult 109:517–524
Baskaran P, Van Staden J (2014) Plant regeneration via somatic embryogenesis in Drimia robusta. Plant Cell Tissue Organ Cult 109:517–524
Brendler T, van Wyk B-E (2008) A historical, scientific and commercial perspective on the medicinal use of Pelargonium sidoides (Geraniaceae). J Ethnopharmacol 119:420–433
Cangahuala-Inocente GC, Dal Vesco LL, Steinmacher D, Torres AC, Guerra MP (2007) Improvements in somatic embryogenesis protocol in Feijoa (Acca sellowiana (Berg) Burret): induction, conversion and synthetic seeds. Sci Hortic 111:228–234
Colling J, Groenewald JH, Makunga NP (2010) Genetic alterations for increased coumarin production lead to metabolic changes in the medicinally important Pelargonium sidoides DC. (Geraniaceae). Metab Eng 12:561–572
Deo PC, Taylor M, Harding RM, Tyagi AP, Becker DK (2010) Initiation of embryogenic cell suspensions of taro (Colocasia esculenta var. esculenta) and plant regeneration. Plant Cell Tissue Organ Cult 100:283–291
Dhir SK, Dhir S, Widholm JM (1991) Plantlet regeneration from immature cotyledon protoplasts of soybean (Glycine max L.). Plant Cell Rep 10:39–43
Gerdakaneh M, Mozafari AA, Mardah A, Sarabi B (2011) Effects of different amino acids on somatic embryogenesis of strawberry (Fragaria 3 ananassa Duch.). Acta Physiol Plant 33:1847–1852
Hua YM, Rong HN (2010) A simple cryopreservation protocol of Dioscorea bulbifera L. embryogenic calli by encapsulation-vitrification. Plant Cell Tissue Organ Cult 101:349–358
Jeong JH, Jung SJ, Murthy HN, Yu KW, Paek KY, Moon HK, Choi YE (2005) Production of eleutherosides in in vitro regenerated embryos and plantlets of Eleutherococcus chiisanensis. Biotechnol Lett 27:701–704
Ke X, Zhang X, Shi H, Li B (1996) Electroporation of immature maize zygotic embryos and regeneration of transgenic plants. Transgenic Res 5:219–221
Khan MA, Abbasi BH, Ali H, Ali M, Adil M, Hussain I (2015) Temporal variations in metabolite profiles at different growth phases during somatic embryogenesis of Silybum marianum L. Plant Cell Tissue Organ Cult 120:127–139
Kumar V, Chandra S (2014) High frequency somatic embryogenesis and synthetic seed production of the endangered species Swertia chirayita. Biologia 69:186–192
Manjkhola S, Dhar U, Joshi M (2005) Organogenesis, embryogenesis, and synthetic seed production in Arnebia euchroma—a critically endangered medicinal plant of the Himalaya. In Vitro Cell Dev Biol Plant 41:244–248
Martin KP (2004) Plant regeneration through somatic embryogenesis in medicinally important Centella asiatica L. In Vitro Cell Dev Biol-Plant 40:586–591
Moyo M, Finnie JF, Van Staden J (2012) Topolins in Pelargonium sidoides micropropagation: do the new brooms really sweep cleaner? Plant Cell Tissue Organ Cult 110:319–327
Moyo M, Aremu AO, Gruz J, Šubrtova M, Szüčova L, Doležal K, Van Staden J (2013) Conservation strategy for Pelargonium sidoides DC: phenolic profile and pharmacological activity of acclimatized plants derived from tissue culture. J Ethnopharmacol 149:557–561
Murashige T, Skoog F (1962) A revised medium for rapid growth and bio assays with tobacco tissue cultures. Physiol Plant 15:473–497
Pathi KM, Tula S, Tuteja N (2013) High frequency regeneration via direct somatic embryogenesis and efficient Agrobacterium mediated genetic transformation of tobacco. Plant Signal Behav 8(6):e24354
Paul S, Dam A, Bhattacharyya A, Bandyopadhyay TK (2011) An efficient regeneration system via direct and indirect somatic embryogenesis for the medicinal tree Murraya koenigii. Plant Cell Tissue Organ Cult 105:271–283
Peña-Ramírez Y, García-Sheseña I, Herna´ndez-Espinoza Á, Domíguez-Herna´ndez A, Barredo-Pool F, González-Rodríguez J, Robert M (2011) Induction of somatic embryogenesis and plant regeneration in the tropical timber tree Spanish red cedar [Cedrela odorata L. (Meliaceae)]. Plant Cell Tissue Organ Cult 105:203–209
Raju CS, Kathiravan K, Aslam A, Shajahan A (2013) An efficient regeneration system via somatic embryogenesis in mango ginger (Curcuma amada Roxb.). Plant Cell Tissue Organ Cult 112:387–393
Raomai S, Kumaria S, Tandon P (2014) Plant regeneration through direct somatic embryogenesis from immature zygotic embryos of the medicinal plant, Paris polyphylla Sm. Plant Cell Tissue Organ Cult 118:445–455
Red Data List of South African plants version 2013.1, 2013 http://redlist.sanbi.org/. Accessed 09 Dec 2013
Robichaud RL, Lessard VC, Merkle SA (2004) Treatments affecting maturation and germination of American chestnut somatic embryos. J Plant Physiol 161:957–969
Shrivastava S, Chawla HS (2001) Synergistic effect of growth regulators and glutamine on regeneration response in high yielding cultivars of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). Indian J Genet 61:12–15
Siddiqui Z, Mujib A, Maqsood M (2011) Liquid overlaying improves somatic embryogenesis in Catharanthus roseus. Plant Cell Tissue Organ Cult 104:247–256
Sivanesan I, Lim MY, Jeong BR (2011) Somatic embryogenesis and plant regeneration from leaf and petiole explants of Campanula punctata Lam. var. rubriflora Makino. Plant Cell Tissue Organ Cult 107:365–369
Tribulato A, Remotti PC, Loffler HJM (1997) Somatic embryogenesis and plant regeneration in Lilium longiflorum Thunb. Plant Cell Rep 17:113–118
Vani AKS, Reddy VD (1996) Morphogenesis from callus cultures of chickpea, Cicer arietinum L. Indian J Exp Biol 34:285–287
Yin Y, Li S, Chen Y, Guo H, Tian W, Chen Y (1993) Fertile plants regenerated from suspension culture-derived protoplasts of an indica-type rice (Oryza sativa L.). Plant Cell Tissue Organ Cult 32:61–68
Zouine J, Hadrami IEI (2007) Effect of 2, 4-D, glutamine and BAP on embryogenic suspension culture of date palm (Phoenix dactylifera L.). Sci Hortic 112:221–226
Acknowledgments
V. Kumar and M. Moyo thank the National Research Foundation and the University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa for support in the form of postdoctoral fellowships. The authors are grateful to the Microscopy and Microanalysis Unit (MMU), UKZN, Pietermaritzburg for microscopic assistance.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Kumar, V., Moyo, M. & Van Staden, J. Somatic embryogenesis of Pelargonium sidoides DC.. Plant Cell Tiss Organ Cult 121, 571–577 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11240-015-0726-2
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11240-015-0726-2