Development of robust in vitro propagation protocol and cyto-genetic fidelity assessment of Siraitia grosvenorii (monk fruit)

Siraitia grosvenorii (Swingle) C. Jeffrey of the family Cucurbitaceae is a unique and precious plant of medicinal and economic importance in the international market. Due to the huge market potential and to narrow down the gap between demand and supply, an efficient in vitro propagation system using nodal explants was established. Shoot nodal segments were cultured in medium supplemented with different concentrations of 6-benzylaminopurine (BAP) and kinetin (Kn 1.0–7.5 µM). A two-stage culture is recommended for micropropagation of S. grosvenorii. The highest shoot multiplication was observed in BAP-supplemented medium (5.0 µM), whereas rooting was observed in half-strength MS medium supplemented with 8.75 µM of indole-3-butyric acid (IBA). Fully developed plantlets were acclimatized with 100 % survival in sterilized sand. These hardened 15-day-old plants were successfully established under shade net conditions in fields. In vitro raised plants were found genetically stable using molecular markers, including RAPD and ISSR. The 2C nuclear DNA content using flow cytometry was observed to be 0.73–0.76 pg. Hence, the protocol developed for in vitro propagation of S. grosvenorii is cost-effective and can be efficiently used for the industrial production of this natural sweetener and pharmaceutically important plants.