Comparative analysis on the effect of seaweed liquid extracts and commercial plant growth regulators on in vitro propagation of Bacopa monnieri

Abstract

Employment of commercial Plant Growth Regulators (PGRs) is inevitable in plant tissue culturing, but it makes the process costlier. As a natural substitute with well-known plant growth promoting activity, seaweeds act as a plentiful source of these regulators. In this study, the plant growth enhancing property of Seaweed Liquid Extracts (SLEs) from Gracilaria edulis and Sargassum wightii was compared with that of the commercial PGRs during the in vitro propagation of Bacopa monnieri, a plant of high medicinal value. 0.1mg/ml of Naphthalene Acetic acid (NAA) and 1.0mg/ml of Kinetin were used to compare the plant growth promoting activity of commercial PGRs with Seaweed Liquid Extracts. Supplementation of MS media with different proportion of SLEs from S. wightii and G. edulis significantly enhanced the growth of Bacopa monnieri. 30% and 40% liquid extracts from S. wightii and G. edulis respectively enhanced shoot and root proliferation and increased the survivability of the propagated plant. Our results demonstrated that seaweed liquid extracts are more effective in enhancing the in vitro propagation of B. monnieri than commercial PGRs. Hence, the seaweed extracts as a source of the plant growth regulators are suggested as a better alternative for the commercial PGRs used for in vitro propagation of Bacopa monnieri.