Characterization of Calluses Generated from a Halophyte, Salicornia europaea

Abstract

Salicornia europaea, a member of the family Chenopodiaceae, is a highly salt-tolerant halophyte, which is distributed in the salt marsh. To analyze the mechanisms of salt tolerance at cellular level, callus-initiating conditions were investigated using the sterilized leaves. Murashige-Skoog medium containing 1x10^-7 M of 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid and 1x10^-6 M of 6-benzylaminopurine is the most efficient medium for the callus initiation (under 16 h of light and 8 h of darkness condition). Interestingly red and greening calluses were generated from the leaves, respectively. Both calluses could grow in the presence of over 300 mM NaCl. In this study, effect of salt stress on the growths and ion contents in these calluses were investigated. Furthermore, genes responsible for the salt tolerance were also investigated.