Pomegranate biology and biotechnology: A review

Pomegranate (Punica granatum L.) is one of the oldest known edible fruit tree species, originating in Central Asia, but with a wide geographical global distribution, reflecting its adaptation to a wide range of climatic conditions. It is important for its nutritional, medicinal and ornamental properties and its high consumption and industrial value. In a bid to better utilize and improve the current genetic resources, there is a need to understand and appreciate studies related to the use, centre of origin and diversity, as well as the characterization, evaluation and conservation, taxonomy and systematics of the genus. Punica. In addition to understanding the basic biology of the plant, how biotechnological tools, including cell and tissue culture and micropropagation (i.e. somatic embryogenesis, organogenesis, synthetic seeds, somaclonal variation, mutagenesis, haploidy, and in vitro conservation), genetic transformation and marker technology, have been used to improve pomegranate germplasm are all topics that have been covered in this review. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.