Increase of in vitro regeneration in Malus domestica by the application of phosphatase inhibitors

The effect of the phosphatase inhibitors sodium fluoride and sodium orthovanadaate on adventitious shoot regeneration from primary leaf explants was tested in eight genotypes of apple Malus domestica Borkh. Ten different concentrations between 0.5 and 100μM of each substance were added to a modified Murashige and Skoog regeneration medium containing 0.9 μM TDZ and 0.5 μM IBA. In general, all the con-centrations tested were able to promote shoot formation, although distinct maxima could be observed depending upon the genotype and the inhibitor. Shoot yield was influenced mostly by the genotype and by the concentration of the inhibitor, as well as the interaction between these two factors. In six of the eight genotypes the total number of regenerated shoots increased significantly compared with the control. This was achieved by an increase of the number of regenerating explants as well as the number of shoots per regenerating explant Comparing these results with those of former publications, application of the two phosphatase inhibitors resulted in an improved regeneration response in the corresponding genotypes. This method may also contribute to the understanding of in vitro regeneration in plants.