In vitro plant regeneration of Ilex paraguariensis (aquifoliaceae)

Summary  Nodal segments as well as shoot tips and apical meristems of 2-yr-old “maté” plants (Ilex paraguariensis St. Hil.) were cultured in vitro to establish micropropagation systems. Maximum shoot regeneration was achieved when nodal segments were cultured with 1/4 Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium with 3% sucrose. We induced roots to differentiate by transferring the regenerated shoots onto the same medium, solidified with 2.5 g Phytagel per 1 and supplemented with indole-3-butyric acid (7.4 μM) and finally transferring shoots to 1/4 MS medium with 3% sucrose and lacking growth regulators. Plants were successfully established in soil.