An efficient micropropagation system for Celastrus paniculatus Willd.: a vulnerable medicinal plant

A micropropagation protocol was developed for Celastrus paniculatus, a vulnerable medicinal plant. Cultures were initiated from nodal explants collected from young shoots of a 12-year-old plant in MS basal medium. An average of five shoots were produced in MS medium supplemented with 1.5 mg l⁻¹ benzyl adenine (BA) and 0.1 mg l⁻¹ naphthalene acetic acid (NAA) after two subculture cycles with a 30-day interval. Continuous subculture in the same medium for three more cycles resulted in reduction of the number of multiple shoots (2 or 3 shoots), vitrification of the shoots, and callus formation. Vitrification of cultures could be overcome by the use of MS medium supplemented with lower concentrations of BA (0.05 mg l⁻¹) and NAA (0.01 mg l⁻¹). Among the various rooting trials, ex vitro rooting of shoots with simultaneous hardening was most efficient. The method standardized in the present study is simple, as it eliminated separate steps for in vitro rooting and hardening. Qualitative chemical similarity of the tissue culture regenerants with the mother plant was confirmed using high performance thin-layer chromatographic (HPTLC) profiling.