Development of Plant Regeneration Protocol through Male Bud Culture of Kolikuttu Banana (Musa spp.) Var. Agra

Developing efficient direct plant regeneration protocols using different explants are specially valuable for multiplying Kolikuttu banana (AAB) var. Agra which is known to be less responsive for micropropagation. In the present study, an alternative protocol was devised to regenerate true-to-type plantlets using immature hands of the male bud as explants. Two different hand sizes of male buds were cultured on 4 different solidified MS media combinations with 2 levels of 6-Benzylaminopurine (BAP), supplemented with and without coconut water. The results revealed that the number of responded hands significantly higher (65.5%) with <10 mm hand size than 10-20 mm size (48.5%) and cultured in the medium with 8 mg L^-1 BAP without coconut water at the culture initiation step. Shoot bud formation was initiated in the 4th subculture cycle in the medium with 2 mg L^-1 BAP, irrespective of the size of the hands. In the in-vitro rooting study, shoots that are longer than 5 mm were well rooted in the medium without rooting hormones, followed by the medium with 0.5 mg L^-1 Indole-3-acetic acid (IAA). No significant variations were observed in the growth and yield parameters of regenerated plants during field evaluation. Fruit quality characteristics, including pH, ^oBrix, titratable acidity and flesh color were found to be comparable to control plants. These findings suggest that this technique can serve as a viable alternative for propagation, particularly in situations where an adequate supply of mother stock for shoot tip culture is not available.