TISSUE-CULTURE OF ALOE-ARBORESCENS MILLER VAR NATALENSIS BERGER

We examined the culture conditions for callus induction in the tissue of Aloe arborescens. When incubated in the dark at 25-degrees-C, for about 30 days callus was induced. The frequency of callus formation was in the order of superior stalk > middle stalk > inferior stalk. No callus was formed in the leaf. When the Murashige-Skoog (MS) basal agar medium was supplemented with 3% sucrose, 0.1-0.5 muM kinetin (a plant growth regulator) and 10-50 muM alpha-naphthalenacetic acid, callus formation occurred at an incidence of 20-52% (mean: 39%). When the MS basal agar medium was supplemented with 3% glucose and 10% Alpha Modification of Eagle's Medium instead of 3% sucrose, callus formation was promoted, hut the protein and aloin concentrations, and carboxypeptidase activity in the Aloe callus decreased more than those observed in the sucrose-containing medium.