C. Janani, S. Girija, B. D. Ranjitha Kumari
Tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) belongs to the family Solanaceae. It is rich in vitamin A and C and also has the antioxidant properties. The in vitro response of high altitude tomato variety Shalimar was tested using the ten days old explants such as nodal and leaf for the multiple shoot formation and callus induction respectively. Among the different concentration of hormones tested, the maximum percentage (90%) of multiple shoot in MS medium containing BAP (2 mg/l). The callus induction (100%) was observed in 2, 4 –D (2 mg/l) combination with NAA (1 mg/l). Then the preliminary protocol for the efficient transformation of cv. Shalimar was standardized, using the binary vector pBI121 into the Agrobacterium strain LBA4404. And transient GUS expression was used as the basis for identifying the most appropriate conditions for transformation. The transformed leaf explants survived in selection medium (MS medium with 2 mg/l zeatin) fortified with 50 mg/l of each Kanamycin and Cefatoxime. The transient GUS gene was confirmed by which showed blue color formation through GUS assay.
