Growth stimulation produced by methylene blue treatment in sweet potato

Methylene blue as an alternative treatment to gamma rays to stimulate growth in sweet potato tissue cultures, was applied in two different ways: – pre-incubation of nodal explants with methylene blue for 1 h using urea as a permeabilizer; – methylene blue directly incorporated into the culture medium. Both treatments stimulated growth, but the better performance being obtained with the second treatment, which had no toxic effect. The activity and electrophoresis pattern of peroxidase after treatment ofIpomoea batatas plantlets with methylene blue or gamma rays did not show similar results for the two treatments. Peroxidase activity was greater in leaves of gamma ray treated plants compared to the non-treated control. The results obtained with the Methylene blue treatment did not significantly change the peroxidase activity relative to the control. This revised version was published online in June 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.