Effect of Plant Hormones on Callus Induction from Fruit and Seedling Explants of Chilli Pepper （Capsicum annuum L.）

This experiment was conducted to optimize the culture conditions to induce calli from chilli pepper （Capsicum annuum L.） local cultivar. The mature seeds were surface sterilized for one min with 70% Ethanol followed by 20 min with （0%, 2%, 4% or 6%） NaOCI and were germinated on MS medium with 2 mg/L GA3. Seedlings and mature fruits were used as explants source. The placenta, pericarp, hypocotyls, cotyledonal leaves, shoot tips and roots were cultured on MS media supplemented with Kinetin （0.0 mg/L, 0.5 mg/L, 1.0 mg/L, 2.0 mg/L） and IAA （0.0 mg/L, 1.0 mg/L, 2.0 mg/L） in different combinations or NAA or 2,4-D （0.0 mg/L, 1.0 mg/L, 2.0 mg/L, 4.0 mg/L）. Callus fresh weight was recorded after 4 weeks in culture. The results showed that the best sterilizing method was with 70% Ethanol followed by 20 mints with （4% or 6%） NaOCI, however 6% NaOCI reduced seed＇s viability. Callus was induced from all explants cultured on MS media supplemented with IAA and Kinetin except the placenta and the pericarp. The results showed that the hypocotyls surpass all other explants in the mean callus fresh weight which was 160.58 mg compared with 147.81 mg, 134.95 mg, and 122.33 mg for cotyledonal leaves, shoot tips and roots respectively. Moreover the analysis of the interaction between the growth regulators and the explants showed that 2 mg/L IAA and Kinetin had significant effect on callus mean fresh weight which was （309.74, 339.14, 358.48, and 284.64） mg for the shoot tips, cotyledonal leaves, hypocotyls and roots, respectively. On the other hand, 2 mg/L 2,4-D or NAA was the best concentration for callus induction from the placenta and the pericarp. The pericarp gave a mean fresh weight of 276.90 mg in the presence of 2,4-D compared with 253.60 mg for the placenta. Moreover the pericarps gave significantly higher fresh weight than the placenta with an average of 210.3mg and 184.9 mg respectively in the presence of 2 mg/L NAA. In conclusion the best sterilization method of chilli pepper seeds is by 70% ethanol for one minute followed by 20 min in 4% （NaOCI）. The best explants for callus induction only is the Hypocotyls grown on MS medium supplemented with 2 mg/L oflAA and Kinetin under the conditions of the current experiment.

Effect of the Chemical Mutagens Sodium Azide on Plant Regeneration of Two Tomato Cultivars under Salinity Stress Condition in vitro

The study was carried out to induce variations and stimulate callus induction, plant regeneration from different explants of two tomato （Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.） cultivars Trescantos and super Regina by using tissue culture technique and Sodium azide as a chemical mutagens at concentrations （0.0, 2.0 and 4.0） mM under salinity stress condition at the levels（3.0, 6.0 and 9.0） dS/m. Different plant growth regulators were tested for their potentials in callus induction. The results revealed that treated seeds with SA （sodium azide） at concentration （2.0） mM increased seed germination percentage, seedling height and root length as compare to control treatment. While （4.0） mM concentration cause a reduction in all parameters mentioned above. Concerning to callus induction both cultivars showed a different response against different tested media with varying concentrations of plant growth regulators and despite their variable response to all tested media a combination of （2.0） mg from Kinetin （KIN） and lndol acetic acid （IAA） was found to be the most effective as compare to other treatments. Moreover, when callus transferred to a stressed media the variation was observed in explants fresh weight, and high reduction with the increment of salt level were recorded. Similarly the regeneration efficiency from stressed callus were observed at the level 3.0 and 6.0 dS/m while 9.0 dS/m the callus failed to regenerate plants for all three explants of both tomato cultivars.