Plant Tissue Culture : An effective tool of biotechnology for conservation of medicinal plants

Medicinal plants have acquired increasing significance in development co-operation over the last few years. Their use and propagation are cross-sectoral concerns that embrace not only health-care but also nature conservation, biodiversity, economic assistance, trade and legal aspects (e.g. intellectual property). The present book presents biotechnological approaches for the in vitro conservation and mass propagation of two important medicinal plants viz; Tylophora indica and Rauvolfia tetraphylla. Both the plants are rapidly disappearing due to its extensive indiscriminate collection from wild, poor seed germination and lack of adequate commercial plantation. Regeneration and establishment of plantlets through various plant tissue culture techniques has been discussed in this book. The application of these protocols can help to minimize the pressure on wild populations and contribute to the conservation of these valuable medicinal plants. Regeneration of plants from alginate encapsulated shoot buds could be used as nodal delivery system for germplasm storage and exchange. Physiological and biochemical changes during ex vitro establishment micropropagated plants has been discussed.