Abstract

The objective of this work was to cleanse explants of Saccharum officinarumcultivated in vitro using the viral inhibitors DHHT and virazol. The basic vegetal material constituted seeds of 4 varieties of sugarcane, Ð¥99-055, Ð¥97-029, X99-071 and X97-035, obtained from the CIRAD of Guadeloupe. The explants of foliar, stem and root origin size 0.7 - 1.5 mm were cultivated on modified medium of Mourassigue and Skougou. The viral inhibitors introduced in the culture medium to proportions of 1%. The diagnosis of the viruses were made by symtomatologic tests confirmed by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). 5 viruses (SCMV, CMV, RLMV and YDBV) were screened. The use of the virazol and DHHT makes possible to obtain 40, 55, 35 and 60 % explants respectively free from SCMV, CMV, RLMV and YDBV on the X97-029 variety for explants size 1.2 - 1.5 mm. The results show that it is possible to obtain a seed-bearer material of sugarcane free from some viruses by the method of cleaning using the viral inhibitors on explants of larger cuts (1.2 - 1.5 mm).

Key words: Saccharum officinarum, explants, viral inhibitors