MICROPROPAGATION OF WILD CHICORY (Cichorium intybus L. var. silvestre Bisch.) FROM LEAF EXPLANTS

Cichorium intybus is edible, medicinal and forage plant. The pharmaceutical raw materials were obtained from wild chicory (var. silvestre). Currently, farmers are increasingly assume plantations of wild chicory, and breeders are attempting to produce cultivars for medicinal purposes. In the modem breeding of chicory important feature is the ability to clonal propagation in vitro culture. The aim of our study was to assess capacity of natural population of wild chicory for plant regeneration from leaf explants. In the first was examined the effect of 16 combinations of various concentrations of IAA and 2iP on the regeneration of shoots from leaf explants (0.5 cm(2)). After that, 25 plants were propagated on the medium which was found as optimal. Then, their callus growth and shoots regeneration capacities were compared. Later on, was examined the effect of various IAA concentrations on the rooting of shoots. The majority of the shoots was regenerated from callus but direct organogenesis was also observed (8%). Shoot regeneration was found to be the most efficient on MS medium containing 0.5 mg dm(-3) IAA and 4 mg dm(-3) 2iP 97% of the explants produced shoots, while the average number of shoots was 15.5. The amount of callus was found to be a highly heritable trait (h(2) = 0.83). Lower the heritability coefficients were obtained for the number of shoots per explant (0.55) and the average shoot weight (0.40). The wild chicory shoots rooted easily. The number and weight of roots increased with the increasing concentration of IAA.