Abstract

Hypocotyl explants of Catharanthus roseus L. gave rise to callus at a frequency of 90% when cultured on Murashige and Skoog (MS) basal medium supplemented BA (31.1 µM) and NAA (5.4 µM) on dark conditions. The calli (8 weeks old) were placed onto half strength liquid MS medium that had been polluted by bacterial clones of Agrobacterium rhizogenes. Transgenic of calli regenerated hairy roots after 10 days of inoculation and they have grown after 8 weeks. Hairy roots of in vitro C. roseus L. plant which produces several important terpenoid indole alkaloid by infection with A. rhizogenesis. Transformed hairy root increased and produced alkaloids, including vinblastin and vincristine, which are extracted and analyzed by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and used for anticancer and antimicrobial researches.

Key words: Catharanthus roseus, Agrobacterium rhizogenes, genetic transformation, hairy roots.