Micropropagation of Deschampsia antarctica - a frost-resistant Antarctic plant

Extract

Deschampsia antarctica Desv. (Poaceae) is the only native Gramineae found in the Antarctic, where it is restricted to the Antarctic Peninsula and its offshore islands. Its ability to survive the harsh climate has attracted the interest of scientists searching for genes associated with freezing tolerance (Alberdi et al. 2002). For continuing research purposes it would be better if plants did not have to be collected from the field, but could be propagated effectively to provide the necessary experimental material D. antarctica normally reproduces both by seed produced by self-fertilization and also vegetatively from tillers (Holderegger et al. 2003). Vegetative propagation is slow and unable to generate enough plant material for laboratory requirements. This difficulty prompted us to develop a rapid micro-propagation method using tissue-culture methods for the production of large numbers of plants in relatively short periods.