Micropropagation of a tropical fruit tree Spondias mangifera Willd. through direct organogenesis

An efficient in vitro propagation is described for Spondias mangifera Willd., a medicinally important tree, using nodal explants obtained from 4-week-old seedlings. The frequency of shoot regeneration from seedling node was affected by various concentrations of BAP and successive transfer of mother explant. MS (Murashige and Skoog, Physiol Plant 15:473-497, 1962) medium supplemented with 1.0 mg l(-1) of 6-benzylaminopurine (BAP) was optimal for shoot multiplication. Upon this medium, highest number of shoots (about 10.6) per explants was obtained after fourth subculture of mother explants. Half-strength MS medium containing IAA (1.0 mg l(-1)) was most effective for rooting of shoots. Regenerated plantlets were successfully acclimatized and transferred into soil with 80-90% survival rate. The regenerated plants were morphologically uniform and exhibited similar growth characteristics and vegetative morphology to the mother plants. This is the first report on micropropagation of S. mangifera, which can be applied for further genetic transformation assays and pharmaceutical purposes.