Callus induction and shoot organogenesis from anther cultures of Curcuma attenuata Wall

Curcuma attenuata is a highly valued ornamental. This study provides the first report on C. attenuata shoot organogenesis and plant regeneration. Immature anthers derived from 5 to 7 cm long inflorescences were isolated and cultured on different variations of Murashige and Skoog (MS) media to induce callus and then shoot organogenesis. When the 2-mm long anthers in which microspores were at the uninucleate developmental stage were cultured in the dark on MS medium containing 13.6 μM 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) and 2.3 μM kinetin (KT) for 15 days and then transferred to 40 μmol m−2 s−1 fluorescent light for 30 days, the percentage callus induction reached 33.3 %. After callus was transferred to various differentiation media and cultured in the light, 33.1 % of all callus cultures could differentiate into adventitious shoots on MS medium supplemented with 22.0 μM 6-benzyladenine (BA), 0.53 μM α-naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA) and 1.4 μM thidiazuron (TDZ) after culturing for 60 days. Over 95 % of plantlets survived after transplanting plantlets into trays with a mixture of sand and perlite (2: 1) for 20 days. Chromosome number, determined from the root tips of young plantlets, indicated that all plantlets were diploid (2n = 84).