Micro propagation of native varieties of cocoa (Theobroma cacao) by somatic embryogenesis

Abstract

The cocoa farming (Theobroma cacao), in pre-Columbian times, had a financial and cultural importance in El Salvador, but due to the inclement weather on the native population, part of the knowledge about the cocoa farming was lost. Nowadays, it is intended to reactivate the cocoa fields in some farms of the country because many coffee forests were damaged by Roya, disease caused by the fungus Hemileia vastatrix. Because of this problem, it was decided to implement a micro-propagation system of native cocoa trees in El Salvador in order to establish a protocol of rescuing native materials and subsequently to facilitate propagation thought somatic embryogenesis. In this practice were evaluated three doses of glucose that are 10, 20 and 30g L-1 as a carbon source among the farming and four doses of 2-4D (Acid 2-4 dichlorophenoxyacetic) that are 0.0, 1.0, 2.0 and 3.0 ml L-1. This auxin infers in the callogenesis of the cocoa explants. The growing medium implemented was DKW (Driver and Kiniyuki et al., 1984). The best treatment to the calluses regeneration was obtained with the doses of 20g L-1 of glucose and 2.0ml L-1 of 2-4D. It was made an Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) with comparison of averages by Turkey and Test of multiple ranges. Moreover, it was implemented the statistic program Statgraphics Centurion XVI.I to the data analysis.

Producción Agropecuaria y Desarrollo Sostenible, Vol. 6, 2017: