Optimizing the initial steps of immature endosperm culture of seeded banana (Musa sapientum L.) cultivar Bhutia of Bangladesh

Abstract: The local Bangladeshi banana varieties, possessing similar brix percentage to that of commercial varieties, grow well under adverse conditions with minimum care but are less popular due to the presence of seed. Endosperm culture of seeded banana can produce triploid seedless varieties which can be cultivated commercially in unsuited environments with less agricultural inputs. The current study was conducted to optimize the initial steps of endosperm culture using the immature endosperm of seeded banana cultivar Bhutia. Young fruits at various stages were collected from the local banana gardens to find out suitable developmental stage of endosperm for culture. Endosperms of juvenile fruits at 25 days age, exhibited jelly state, was selected for culture because endosperm explants at that age survived the most in MS medium. It was observed that non-treated explants produced larger calli comparatively quickly than that of cold-treated explants. Largest calli (0.41 cm) within shorter time period (27 days after inoculation) was produced in MS medium additionally supplemented with 0.5 ppm 1-Naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA) besides 0.5 ppm 2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) and 0.5 ppm Kinetin (Kn). The produced calli gradually became blackish in appearance and higher ascorbic acid content (480 mg/100g) was observed in blackish calli. Avoiding the blackening of calli derived from endosperm of seeded banana would be a challenge to establish a successful triploid production protocol in future.