Aspectos fisiológicos e bioquímicos da morfogênese in vitro de Dendrobium phalaenopsis e Cattleya labiata

Abstract

Orchids stand out among the ornamental tropical due to the exotic beauty of flowers, exuberant colors and shapes. Due to the high market demand, depredation of habitat, low rate of seed germination in natural environment and slow growth, tissue culture has been presented as an important tool for the production of seedlings of orchids on a large scale, in a reduced period of time and with greater seedling quality over conventional methods. The polysaccharide chitosan has been tested as an additive in the culture medium of some species as it stand out as a growth promoter and by acting as an antioxidant. This study aimed to evaluate the influence of dietary supplementation of chitosan to the nutrient medium in vitro cultivation of Dendrobium Phalaenopsis and Cattleya labiata in liquid and solid medium. Shoots from in vitro seedlings of both species were inoculated into vials containing 30 ml of MS medium with half the ionic strength. The experiment consisted of the combination of three chitosan concentrations (0, 15 and 20 mg.L-1) with nutrient medium in solid and liquid state. Each treatment had four replicates, each with two plants. The experimental design was completely randomized with a factorial scheme of 3x2 (chitosan concentration x physical state of the medium). For 50 days were evaluated the total fresh weight, number of shoots and roots, and were determined activities of superoxide dismutase enzyme (SOD), ascorbate peroxidase (APX) and catalase (CAT). In cultivation in liquid medium, D. phalaenopsis fresh weight showed higher treatment with 20 mg.L-1 of chitosan as the highest number of shoots was observed in both media, at the same concentration. C. labiata also exhibited higher fresh weight and number of shoots in liquid medium, but at the concentration of 15 mg.L-1 of chitosan. The solid medium favored the emission of roots in both species, but inhibited the formation of shoots of C. labiata regardless of the chitosan concentration. The best development of seedlings of both species in liquid medium coincided with increased activity of SOD directly proportional to the chitosan. This activation of SOD was not accompanied by an increase in the activity of APX or CAT, showing the action of chitosan in the dismutation of superoxide without forming hydrogen peroxide. On solid medium, the action of chitosan on the antioxidative mechanism is also provided by the activation of the APX and CAT. Verified the prevalence of the liquid medium for micropropagation of the species studied and confirmed the combination of chitosan in controlling levels of reactive oxygen species in joint action with the antioxidant enzyme system action.