PLANT CELL BIOTECHNOLOGY AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY

The article presents plants` biochemical characteristics of some lavender (Belyanka, Record) and lavandin (Rabat, Snezhnyi Bars) cultivars from the collection of Nikita Botanical Gardens under in vitro cultivation. Apical meristems of axillary buds were introduced to in vitro culture. They were cultivated on the modified MS medium with 0.3 mg L^-1Kinetin, 0.025 mg L^-1 NAA and 0.25 mg L^-1 GA₃. Culture medium was supplemented with 30 g L^-1 sucrose and 9 g L^-1agar. Explants in the culture vessels were kept in a growth chamber at 25 ± 1°C under 16-h photoperiod supplied by cool-white fluorescent lamps giving 37.5 µmol m^-2 s^-1. The samples were examined after 2 and 9 months culture.

Complex biochemical changes were noticed in plants under in vitro culture: proline concentration reduced, total phenolic compounds, except Belyanka cultivar, increased, ascorbic acid content did not significantly change. Catalase activity decrease was observed along with an increase or no change in the activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and a significant increase in polyphenol oxidase (PPO) activity.

In the lavandin cultivars changes in low molecular antioxidants content and redox enzymes activity were less pronounced compared to the lavender cultivars. Besides, vegetative parts of lavandin cultivars were characterized with stable photosynthetic apparatus functioning and high viability index.

The obtained results let us to recommend lavandin cultivars as plants that have a high regeneration capacity in vitro.