Breadfruit (
Artocarpus altilis, Moraceae) is a traditionally cultivated, high-energy, high-yield crop, but widespread use of the plant for food is limited
by poor quality and poor storage properties of the fruit. A unique field genebank of breadfruit species and cultivars exists
at the National Tropical Botanical Garden in the Hawaiian Islands and is an important global resource for conservation and
sustainable use of breadfruit. However, this plant collection could be damaged by a random natural disaster such as a hurricane.
We have developed a highly efficient in vitro plant propagation system to maintain, conserve, mass propagate, and distribute
elite varieties of this important tree species. Mature axillary shoot buds were collected from three different cultivars of
breadfruit and proliferated using a cytokinin-supplemented medium. The multiple shoots were maintained as stock cultures and
repeatedly used to develop whole plants after root differentiation on a basal or an auxin-containing medium. The plantlets
were successfully grown under greenhouse conditions and were reused to initiate additional shoot cultures for sustained production
of plants. Flow cytometry was used to determine the nuclear deoxyribonucleic acid content and the ploidy status of the in
vitro grown population. The efficacy of the micropropagation protocols developed in this study represents a significant advancement
in the conservation and sustained mass propagation of breadfruit germplasm in a controlled environment free from contamination.
Keywords Breadfruit -
Artocarpus altilis
- Micropropagation - Temporary immersion bioreactor - Germplasm conservation