Somatic embryogenesis and plant regeneration of cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) landraces from Cameroon

A procedure to regenerate cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) cultivars from Cameroon via somatic embryogenesis (SE) was developed. Shoot apical meristems and immature leaf lobes were used as explants on Murashige and Skoog (MS) basal medium containing 33 or 50 µM of the auxins Picloram (Pic), 2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D), Dicamba (Dic), and α-Naphthalene acetic acid. Cultivar performance was assessed using SE and number of somatic embryos produced. Overall, the frequency of primary somatic embryogenesis (PSE) and the mean number of somatic embryos produced varied considerably with genotype, type of auxin and concentration tested. For example, cultivar (cv.) Ngan Mbada showed the best performance on MS medium supplemented with 50 µM Pic with a SE frequency of 40 % and an average number of somatic embryos of 90. The second best performance was recorded in cv. Local Red on MS medium supplemented with 33 µM 2,4-D, where the SE frequency was 40 % and an average number of somatic embryos of 60.5. Cultivar Ekona Red recorded the best performance on medium supplemented with 50 µM Pic showing a SE frequency of 47 % and an average number of somatic embryos of 45. We further examined secondary and cyclic somatic embryogenesis (SSE, CSE) and both were also observed to vary with genotype, however, both exhibited significantly higher frequencies of SE compared with PSE. SE started to decline at the fourth cycle of embryogenesis. Examination of organogenesis showed that shoot bud induction from green cotyledons varied across cultivars and benzylaminopurine was shown to outperform Thidiazuron in the ability to induce organogenesis. Furthermore, the frequencies of bud induction were identical under light and dark conditions. Finally, regenerated plants grew easily in the greenhouse with 90-100 % survival rate and did not display detectable variation in morphology.