Biotechnology and Conservation of Plant Biodiversity

Carlos Alberto Cruz-Cruz, María Teresa González-Arnao and Florent Engelmann
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Carlos Alberto Cruz-Cruz: Faculty of Chemistry Sciences, University of Veracruz, Prolongación Oriente 6, No. 1009, Orizaba, Veracruz 94340, Mexico
María Teresa González-Arnao: Faculty of Chemistry Sciences, University of Veracruz, Prolongación Oriente 6, No. 1009, Orizaba, Veracruz 94340, Mexico
Florent Engelmann: UMR DIADE, Joint Research Unit "Diversity, Adaptation and Development of Plants", IRD (Research Institute for Development), 911 Avenue Agropolis, BP 64501, 34032 Montpellier cedex 5, France

Resources, 2013, vol. 2, issue 2, 1-23

Abstract: Advances in plant biotechnology provide new options for collection, multiplication and short- to long-term conservation of plant biodiversity, using in vitro culture techniques. Significant progress has been made for conserving endangered, rare, crop ornamental, medicinal and forest species, especially for non-orthodox seed and vegetatively propagated plants of temperate and tropical origin. Cell and tissue culture techniques ensure the rapid multiplication and production of plant material under aseptic conditions. Medium-term conservation by means of in vitro slow growth storage allows extending subcultures from several months to several years, depending on the species. Cryopreservation (liquid nitrogen, −196 °C) is the only technique ensuring the safe and cost-effective long-term conservation of a wide range of plant species. Cryopreservation of shoot tips is also being applied to eradicate systemic plant pathogens, a process termed cryotherapy. Slow growth storage is routinely used in many laboratories for medium-conservation of numerous plant species. Today, the large-scale, routine application of cryopreservation is still restricted to a limited number of cases. However, the number of plant species for which cryopreservation techniques are established and validated on a large range of genetically diverse accessions is increasing steadily.

Keywords: biotechnology; conservation; plant biodiversity; in vitro collecting; slow growth storage; cryopreservation; endangered species (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2013
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