Piyarathna KKCTP1, Vassanthini R1*, Safeena MIS2, Rohonadeera H3
1Department of Biosystems Technology, Faculty of Technology, Eastern University, Chenkalady, Sri Lanka
2 Department of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Applied Sciences, South Eastern University of Sri Lanka
3Institute for Agro-Technology and Rural Science, University of Colombo, Hambanthota, Sri Lanka
Abstract
Banana (Musa spp.) is one of the most important fruit crops globally, and in-vitro propagation plays
a crucial role in large-scale multiplication, particularly for cultivars like sour bananas (Mysore AAB). In tissue
culture, sucrose is the primary carbon source, typically used in the form of commercial white sugar. However, this
study investigates the potential of sugarcane molasses as a cost-effective and sustainable alternative to commercial
white sugar in Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium for in-vitro sour banana propagation. The experiments were conducted
using MS medium supplemented with varying concentrations of sugarcane molasses (10 g/L, 20 g/L, 30 g/L, and 40 g/L)
compared to the standard 30 g/L of commercial white sugar. Growth parameters such as root initiation, root number,
root length, plant height, root fresh and dry weight, and total plant fresh and dry weight were evaluated over six
weeks. The MS medium with sugar (T1) showed the best results, significantly outperforming all other treatments
(p <0.05), with the highest plant height (53.36 mm), root number (5.41), root length (7.68 cm), and plant dry
weight (0.09 g). Sugarcane molasses in low concentration with MS media (T2, 10 g/L) exhibited promising
performance, it significantly lower than T1 with plant height (34.4 mm), root number (4.4), and shoot dry
weight (0.05 g). However, higher concentrations of molasses resulted in media browning and reduced root growth,
likely due to excessive impurities and phenolic compound accumulation. This study demonstrates that sugarcane
molasses in low concentrations with further optimization could be a viable, cost-effective, and sustainable
alternative carbon source for commercial micro propagation of banana. Therefore, further research is recommended
to refine molasses treatment methods to minimize impurities and optimize plantlet development.
Keywords:
Alternative carbon source, Banana (Musa spp), Cost-effectiveness, In-vitro propagation, Sugarcane molasses, Sucrose
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