Rapid in vitro regeneration method for Moringa oleifera and performance evaluation of field grown nutritionally enriched tissue cultured plants

The present investigations were attempted to develop the rapid in vitro micropropagation protocol of Moringa oleifera (Variety-PKM-1) from nodal sections of young, aseptically grown seedlings. Benzyladenine (BA) at 4.44 mu M was found to be optimal in producing on maximum an average of 9.0 +/- 1.0 axillary shoots per explant after 15 days of inoculation. A high multiplication rate was established through routine sub culturing of nodal sections explanted from in vitro shoot cultures. In vitro rooting of individual shoot culture was maximum (100%) on medium containing indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) at 2.85 mu M along with indole-3-butyric acid (IBA) at 4.92 mu M. Eighty percent of the rooted plants survived after being transplanted in the soil, provided that the potted plantlets were covered with clear polythene bags and kept in a shaded greenhouse for 15 days before exposure to ambient conditions. Fresh leaves of field grown tissue culture plants were analyzed for lutein, beta-carotene, alpha-tocopherol, total carotenoids and chlorophyll content. Tissue culture-derived plants were found nutritionally superior over control plants to contain 13.2 and 14.7% higher amount a-tocopherol and total carotenoids, respectively. The result of present study will be useful for rapid clonal propagation of M. oleifera and production of nutritionally superior plant.