Abstract

Colchicum calcedonicum Azn is one of the endemic species distributed in Turkey, where many endemic plant species occur. It has long-oval shaped corm under the soil, and usually 3-4 leaves on it. In vitro production of endemic species using callus culture has become promising study for conservation. The aim of this study is to generate an efficient callus protocol for in vitro production of C. chalcedonicum. To sterilize the explants, 0.25% (w/v) mercuric chloride (HgCl2) was used for 20 min. In addition to mercuric chloride, surface sterilization was conducted by using 6.5% NaCl with Tween 80 for 30 min. We used 19 different mediums and the primary callus formation was obtained in Murashige & Skoog’s basal medium (MS) supplemented with 2,4-D (2 mg L-1), 2IP (0.5 mg L-1), 3% sucrose and 0.05% active carbon. Our study demonstrated the active carbon usage was effective for the primary callus formation. This study is the first report for primary callus formation of C. chalcedonicum. However, our work is a pioneering study to improve callus formation protocol system for in vitro conservation of endemic species C. chalcedonicum.