Abstract:
The gray banana (Musa paradisiaca) is an agronomically important horlicultural crop
with high nutritional and economic value, widely cultivated in tropical and subtropical
conditions. Conventional propagation through suckers often results in a low
multiplication rate and facilitates the spread of pests and diseases. Therefore, tissue
culture using shoot tips provides an alternative for disease free and genetically unilorm
plant materials. This study aimed to develop an efficient protocol for the initiation of
banana shoot tip culture using Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium supplemented with
varying concentrations of 6-benzylaminopurine (BAP) and indole-3-acetic acid (IAA).
Four initiation media formulated for Rathambala (Tr), Nethrapalam (Tz), and General (T3) varieties, along with a hormone-free control (T+), were evaluated. The effects of
these treatments on shoot initiation, height, leaf formation, colour variation, and
contamination rate were assessed over five weeks. Among the treatments, MS medium
supplemented with 3 mg L I BAP and 2 mg L ' IAA (T3) produced the best results,
showing a higher number of greenish shoots (4 shoots per explant), maximum shoot
formation (1.20 + 0.20), and greater shoot height (9.34 + 1.91 cm). In contrast, the
medium containing lower hormone concentrations (T1) resulted in reduced shoot and
leaf formation. Treatment2, produced the higher number of leaves throughout the five week culture period, indicating its effectiveness in supporting leaf initiation and
expansion. Results of this study confinn that the hormonal equilibrium within the
culture medium plays a crucial role in stimulating cell division and elongation, which
directly influences the morphogenesis of cultured shoots. Furthermore, the study
emphasized the impoftance of maintaining stringent aseptic conditions and effective
sterilization protocols to minimize microbial contamination, a common constraint in
tissue culture. Overall, shoot tip culture w'as validated as a practical and valuable
approach for producing uniform, vigorous, and high-quality banana plantlets. This
technique holds significant potential for large-scale commercial propagation, thereby
contributing to sustainable banana production and agricultural advancement.
