Assessment of genetic stability amongst micropropagated Ansellia africana, a vulnerable medicinal orchid species of Africa using SCoT markers

Micropropagation is an important tool for the conservation of threatened and commercially important plant species of which orchids deserve special attention. Ansellia africana is one such medicinally important orchid species having much commercial significance. However, for large-scale micropropagation to become not only successful but also acceptable by end-users, somaclonal variations occurring in the plantlets need to be eliminated. In the present study, the clonal integrity of micropropagated A. africana plants derived from two different pathways was assessed using a gene-targeted marker system, i.e. Start Codon Targeted polymorphism (SCoT). Our studies recorded a significantly higher gene flow value (Nm = 1.596) amongst the generations with an increment in clonal variability. The developed protocol helps to understand the main start point of clonal variability in a model tissue culture system and the role played by the various plant growth regulators (PGRs). The protocol also documents a fast and cost-effective regeneration pathway for commercially important medicinal orchids with reproducible molecular detection system to monitor and detect clonal variability for obtaining clonally stable true-to-type plantlets for sustainable commercial use.