Chilli peppers - A review on tissue culture and transgenesis

Biotechnology techniques involving plant tissue culture and recombinant DNA technologies are powerful tools that can complement conventional breeding and expedite Capsicum improvement. The rate of progress in Capsicum is relatively slower than other members of Solanaceae because of its high genotypic dependence and recalcitrant nature. Capsicum is a recalcitrant plant in terms of in vitro cell, tissue and organ differentiation, plant regeneration and genetic transformation which makes it difficult to apply recombinant DNA technologies aimed at genetic improvement against pests, diseases and abiotic stress. Despite this, application of tissue culture and genetic transformation have led to significant development in chilli pepper plants, and studies are underway to achieve the targets of pre-harvest improvement and post-harvest characterization for value addition to this crop. This review presents a consolidated account of in vitro propagation and focuses upon contemporary information on biotechnological advances made in Capsicum. (C) 2009 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.