A Novel Method for Rapid Micropropagation of Pineapple

Abstract

A novel micropropagation method for pineapple (Ananas comosus L.), based on shoot elongation induced in vitro, was demonstrated for two cultivars. Decapitated in vitro plantlets were used as explants. Shoot etiolation was induced by placing explants in a Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium containing NAA (10 μm) and incubating in darkness at 28C for 30 to 40 days. The mean number of the regenerated etiolated shoots per explant was 2.6 ± 0.29. The etiolated shoots were placed into N6 medium supplemented with kinetin or BA (25 or 20 μm, respectively). After 4 to 6 weeks, shoots regenerated along the nodes. The highest regeneration rate was 15 and 13 plantlets per node with 25 μm kinetin and 20 mm BA, respectively. Regenerated plantlets were rooted on a growth-regulator-free MS medium. Residual shoots of the initial explants could be recycled by rooting on a growth-regulator-free MS medium. This procedure enables the regeneration of several thousand plantlets per year. Chemical names used: naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA); benzyladenine (BA).