Alizadeh et al., J. Anim. Plant Sci. 23(2):2013 543 MICROPROPAGATION OF GARLIC CHIVES (ALLIUM TUBEROSUM ROTTL. EX SPRANG) USING MESOCOTYL AXIS B. Alizadeh, S. D. Royandazagh * , K. M. Khawar and S. Özcan Department of Field Crops, Faculty of Agriculture, Ankara University, 06110, Dışkapı, Ankara, Turkey * Department of Agricultural Biotechnology, Faculty of Agriculture, Namik Kemal University, Tekirdag, Turkey Corresponding author e-mail: kmkhawar@gmail.com ABSTRACT Garlic chives - Allium tuberosum Rottl. ex Sprang is widely distributed from South East Asia to the Middle East. They are grown for their garlic flavored leaves and are used for culinary purposes. The plants are apomictic, which makes creation of variations and development of new varieties very difficult. The results of previous research show recalcitrant regeneration behaviour in in vitro micropropagation cultures. The study was designed to develop efficient regeneration protocols that could help in easy genetic transformation and mutation studies on MS medium containing various concentrations of TDZ-NAA, TDZ-2, 4-D and BAP-IBA using juvenile mesocotyl axis explant obtained from of one week old in vitro grown seedlings. The concentrations and combinations of different plant growth regulators in MS medium had significantly different and variable effects on bulblet regeneration. Maximum number of 7.20 shoots per explant was recorded on MS medium containing 1 mg/l BAP-2 mg/l IBA. The shoots regenerated on any regeneration medium were not difficult to root on MS medium containing 0.5 mg/l IBA. These rooted plants were easily acclimatized in the growth chamber. This study clearly shows that mesocotyl axis explants of garlic chives can be successfully cultured on BAP-IBA containing medium to regenerate axillary bulblets. To conclude, this protocol provides a successful and reliable propagation technique to regenerate garlic chive coleoptile axis excised from of one week old in vitro regenerated seedlings for the first time. This would help in advanced genetic transformation and mutation studies of the plant in future. Key words: Garlic chive, mesocotyl axis, in vitro, micropropagation, rooting, acclimatization. INTRODUCTION The genus Allium, belonging to the family Liliaceae, comprises about 700 species, including both economically important vegetables and wild species. Allium cepa (onion), A. sativum (garlic) and A. tuberosum (Chinese chives) are commercially important, other Allium species are important locally (Song et al. 2007). A. tuberosum Rottl. ex Sprang. is widely distributed in South East Asia, South Asia and some countries of the Middle East including Iran that grows at an altitude of 1500-2000 m McGee and Stuckey (2002). Many members of Allium are used as food or are important medicinally since thousands of years. They have antimicrobial, antithrombotic, antitumor, hypolipidemic, antiarthritic and hypoglycemic charachteristics related to their high content of organosulfur compounds (Ali et al. 2000; Thomson and Ali 2003). Garlic chives are grown for their leaves, and not for bulbs, which are tough, fibrous elongate and originate from a stout rhizome. Generally its leaves are flat and grass like about 38 cm long 0.8 cm wide and are gray- green in color. The leaves and young inflorescences of garlic chive have garlic like flavor and are used for culinary purposes. Tissue culture techniques are being increasingly exploited for clonal multiplication and in vitro conservation of many Allium species including garlic chives (Zee et al.1977, Novak et a1., 1986; Shuto, et al. 1993, Seabrook 1994, Song and Peffley 1994, Hansen et al 1995, Kim and Soh 1996, Matsuda and Adachi 1996, Xue et al. 1997, Kim et al. 1998, Haque et al. 2000, Zhang et al. 2004, Mukhopadhyay et al. 2005). Breeding plays an important role for Allium improvement. Interspecific hybridizations between wild and cultivated species have generated new genotypes possessing biochemical and genetic properties of both parental plants. Some work is also reported on the occurrence of apomictic plants from unpollinated ovule cultures (Kojima et al., 1989), and plantlet regeneration from callus (Zee et al., 1977). Availability of in vitro propagation technique is of particular importance for A. tuberosum since the plant is apomictic in nature, which makes creation of variations very difficult. If a suitable regeneration protocol is developed, it will help in permanent transfer of desirable genes in the plants or help in creation of accelerated variations in plants through physical or chemical mutagens that could be employed for improvement of garlic chive against desired traits. The results of previous research show slow developments in in vitro micropropagation studies of Allium spp in general and The Journal of Animal & Plant Sciences, 23(2): 2013, Page: 543-549 ISSN: 1018-7081