Rapid in vitro propagation of medicinally important Aquilaria agallocha

INTRODUCTION Many tree species have become the focus of in-creasing conservation concern in recent years, pri-marily because of the current high rates of forest clearance and over-exploitation (Newton et al., 1999).As an illustration, recent surveys have indicated that around 9000 tree species are threatened with extinc-tion (Oldfield et al., 1998). Aquilaria agallocha (Thymelaeaceae) is one of very few species of tropi-cal trees and is the principal source of agarwood, one of the most …

Rapid in vitro propagation of medicinally important Aquilaria agallocha

Aquilaria agallocha can produce fragrant agarwood used for incense, traditional medicine and other products. An efficient plant regeneration system was established via organogenesis from shoots developed from seedlings ofAquilaria agallocha. Shoots generated many buds on MS medium supplemented with 1.3 μmol/L BA (6-benzylaminopurine) in the first 7 weeks,and the buds elongated on MS medium with 1.3 μmol/L BA 0.5 μmol/L NAA (naphthaleneacetic acid) in another 7 weeks, 2.3shoots 2 cm in length per explant were obtained within 14 weeks. Plantlets were rooted on 1/2 MS medium after being immersed in5 μmol/L NAA for 48 h, 96.7% of the roots grew up two weeks later. All plantlets that survived acclimatization grew well in the pots.