Physiological and biochemical changes of micropropagated Dendrobium anosmum Lindl. in ex vitro acclimatization process

Abstract

The ex vitro acclimatization process plays an important role in plant micropropagation. In vitro plantlets have to rapidly adapt to environmental changes. The current work aimed at assessing some physiological and biochemical changes of micropropagated Dendrobium anosmum Lindl. Plantlets during ex vitro acclimatization process, eg. contents of water (leaf relative water content), dry matter, proline and photosynthetic pigments (chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b and carotenoid), chlorophyll fluorescence and antioxidant enzymes (peroxidase và catalase) activities. The analyzed results showed that water content decreased in acclimatized plantlets compared to in vitro ones. The chlorophylls and carotenoids contents of what were significantly higher in ex vitro plantlet leaves compared to the day 0 plantlets. The pigment contents were observed to increase during the ex vitro acclimatation process. When the plantlets were moved out of the in vitro medium, the maximum photochemical efficiency of photosystem II (Fv/Fm) significantly decreased at the early acclimatation points then restored at the end of acclimatation process. The content of proline and activities of antoxidant enzymes significantly increased with different periods of acclimatation process. The proline content and enzyme activities were recorded at the first ex vitro period when most water loss occurred in plantlets. These results suggest that Dendrobium anosmum Lindl in vitro plantlets have adapted to the transplantation by possesing some physiological responses of its photosynthetic system as well as its antioxidant machinery.