Role of biotechnology in mulberry improvement

Abstract

Mulberry (Morus spp.) is one of the economically important trees grown in India and other countries. It is cultivated mainly for leaf, which is used for feeding the mulberry silkworms (Bombyx mori L.). Biotechnological approaches for improvement in mulberry promise great impact as conventional breeding is time consuming and found complications due to heterozygous nature of the plant. Recent attempts have been made to complement conventional breeding with modern biotechnological tools such as plant tissue culture, r-DNA technology and molecular markers to make mulberry genetic improvement easier, speedier and more efficient and effective for betterment of the sericulture industry. The techniques of tissue culture has grown considerably in mulberry and encompassed areas including micropropagation, plant regeneration from leaf discs, and screening for stress tolerance. Recently, genetic engineering is adopted to enhance drought and salt tolerance in mulberry. The objective of these techniques lies on the overall improvement of the host plant for exploitation and utilization in sericulture. In this review an attempt has been made to study various biotechnological techniques and their role in mulberry improvement.