“Bamboo” is a Thai economic crop with high biological diversity. Almost every part can be used, such as shoots and leaves used in the food industry. The trunk and wood are used for processing into architectural structures and furniture. It can also be used as biomass to produce fuel to support production in various industries. However, breeding and growing bamboo seedlings to have high quality that meets industrial needs is not an easy task. Because bamboo is a long-lived plant. But when it comes to the flowering period Bamboo that grows from the same mother clump will gradually die one after the other until it is completely called ‘dead flakes’, which will result in widespread loss.
In addition, bamboo can be grown to have the distinctive characteristics of the species by means of propagation from the mother plant using normal methods such as separating rhizomes, cuttings, and culturing tissue from joints. There are still limitations on the age of the rhizomes. Because the daughter tree will also remember the age of the mother plant. Therefore, if the mother plant is close to flowering, The new plants will bloom and then die along with the original plants, causing the newly planted plants to have a short lifespan. Farmers may receive returns that are not worth their investment.’
The National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA) through the National Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (Biotech) carries out a bamboo seedling expansion project. To promote economic reforestation with modern technology The goal is to deliver 150,000 disease-free bamboo plants to farmers and entrepreneurs who register to participate in the project by 2024, with support from the Budget Bureau.
Dr. Yitho Thapphatat, a researcher on the innovative research team for the medicinal plant production plant, Biotech, NSTDA, explains that the nature of bamboo has 3 types of lifespan: rhizome age (mother plant grown from seed), planting age (separating clumps to plant. ) and trunk age (new trunks that develop in the clump each year). In general, bamboo seedling propagation is commonly done by trunk cuttings. Separate the rhizome and put it in the ground. Or cut the joints of bamboo plants for tissue culture. Because it will make the offspring have the same characteristics as the parent plant. However, these methods have important limitations. ‘The lifespan of the daughter plant is equal to the age of the mother plant’s rhizome.’ If farmers plant seeds from the parent plant, Even if the new plant doesn’t come with the age of the mother plant, But there is a high risk that it will not look like the original plant due to genetic variation. To solve this problem, the research team carried out a project to propagate high economic value bamboo plants using two modern technologies in parallel.
Bamboo tissue culture using somatic embryogenesis or tissue culture from somatic cells through the induction of callus. ), which is a group of cells that do not yet have a function This group of cells was developed by stimulating the meristem of the plant with appropriate culture media in the laboratory. If successful, the somatic embryo of the bamboo will grow into a new plant. (regeneration) will have the same genetic characteristics as the mother in all respects (clonal plants) and will have an age starting from zero or not remembering the age of the mother plant. At this time, research is in the process of monitoring the growth to compare with the mother plant. It is expected that the exact results will be known within the next year. The second type is to grow tissue from the joints of bamboo plants of known age. and has been selected for appropriate economic characteristics according to the intended use. To get bamboo that is useful and long-lasting, it is worth the investment. By conducting this first phase of research, the research team aims to expand bamboo seedlings for use in structures, architecture, and furniture, such as Phai Ruak Dam (Ruk Yai), Phai Sang Mon, and Phai Bong Yai, with the support of bamboo species that The economic characteristics have been selected from specialists who support the project.”
Currently, the research team has developed the breeding process. “Bamboo seedlings are disease-free” at the laboratory level. And is in the process of bringing the expertise and infrastructure readiness of NSTDA Biotech to develop the tissue culture process using liquid media in the form of ‘Temporary Immersion Bioreactor (TIB)’ or ‘Tissue Culture System. with a semi-submersible bioreactor’ to accelerate bamboo propagation in time for the next delivery.
Dr. Yitho explained that in general, the cultivation of seedlings produced by tissue culture involves growing seedlings in the laboratory under sterile conditions with solid or semi-solid media (1 plant per 1 jar), which is a method. The cost of equipment and culture food is not high. But it takes an expert to take care of and adjust the food formula, environment, including transplanting plant tissue and changing the food (subculture) for every plant until the plants are strong and of an appropriate size for sale. But in the case of commercial propagation (mass scale) within a short period of time. The research team had to choose to use the TIB culture process, which despite higher costs in materials and equipment. But it is considered a cost-effective method. Because it effectively reduces costs, labor, and production time.
Growing seedlings using the TIB method uses a bioreactor that looks like two large containers, stacked top-bottom. The upper container is used for growing plant tissue. The lower container is used for holding culture media. The system automatically pushes air into the bottom jar to push the culture medium up to flood the tissues in the upper container at the appropriate frequency and duration as set by the research team. To control the amount of food and the environment suitable for plant growth. Helps to save costs and time in caring for and moving young plants very well. Importantly, plant seedlings raised using this method will grow 3-5 times faster than the previous method. It also stimulates growth and development into complete seedlings in large quantities at a time. In the case of bamboo with small stems, if it is fed with a 5 liter bioreactor, within one month you will get up to 1,000 bamboo plants per bioreactor for distribution. This is after the production of bamboo plants to deliver to project participants. In the first phase already The research team plans to research and develop bamboo propagation processes in the food industry and other industries, such as Maju bamboo, Khao Lam bamboo, giant bamboo, Tong bamboo, and Liang Lam bamboo in the near future.
However, although the research team has expertise in propagation using tissue culture, and raising young plants using the TIB technique, but it cannot be denied that Every time we begin to develop the process of plant tissue culture, different types of plants are developed. Genetic factors (genetic dependent) that affect tissue culture response. It is still a challenging problem in research planning and how to respond when faced with various problems. It is always about the development of plant cells.
Dr. Yitho said that when cultivating different types and strains of plants, food recipes and environments must be developed to be suitable for the genetics of the target plants. especially Development of tissue culture methods in somatic embryogenesis system That requires high knowledge and experience in research. But if the research results are successful It is considered a worthwhile operation. It is very beneficial to the growth of the Thai agricultural industry. The NSTDA Biotech research team is ready to promote the propagation of economic crops for government and private agencies. By providing a full service service. From selecting the right breed to the development of industrial-scale farming processes
“The research team is determined to give Thai people access to high-performance biological resources. To create added value throughout the value chain, in addition to producing high quality, disease-free bamboo plants to deliver to farmers and entrepreneurs as currently operating. In the past, the research team has also developed a process for selecting economic plant varieties and plant propagation on an industrial scale. To transfer knowledge and production technology to those who have always been interested. Examples of plant species include palm family plants such as oil palm, date palm, herbal plants such as galangal, turmeric, and high-value flowering plants such as Pathumma.”
2023-10-15 13:25:00
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