Cryopreservation and In Vitro banking: a cool subject – Preface from the editors

Plant breeding depends largely on having access to a wide variety of plant genetic resources, which are vulnerable to losses caused by biotic and abiotic threats when grown in the field or in a greenhouse. Thus, cryopreservation or in vitro banking is a safe strategy for long-term conservation of such genetic resources, which serves as back-up collections for field genebanks and reduces. For many species, encapsulation technologies can be a promising tool for the management of plant material of high quality, the production in nurseries of plants from in vitro culture, or the conservation of plant genetic resources. Such “synthetic seeds” proved to be of great value in the medium- (slow-growth storage) and long-term (cryopreservation) conservation of germplasm of fruit, ornamental, horticultural and forestry species in small spaces. However, more research is still needed. Cryopreservation projects must have clear goals, long-term funding, skilled technical support staff, necessary infrastructure, and well-defined procedures and protocols, so that they can be routinely implemented in plant cryobanks and help to establish backup collections of valuable plant genetic resources

The bicentenary of the research on 'beautiful' vavilovia (Vavilovia formosa), a legume crop wild relative with taxonomic and agronomic potential

Vavilovia formosa is a relict, endangered species from the highlands of the Caucasus and the Near East. Described in 1812, it has had an uncertain status and was finally recognized as a separate genus of tribe Fabeae (Fabaceae). Our informal international group was established in 2007 to revive the interest in this species as it had been seriously neglected for decades. Here, we provide an overview of the accumulated knowledge on V.formosa and present the results of the most recent multidisciplinary research. Three expeditions were made to two locations in Armenia in 2009, providing the material for anatomical, morphological, chemical and molecular analysis. Unlike previous attempts, ex situ conservation in Yerevan and in vitro propagation, important for potential interspecific hybridization, were successful. Molecular tools were used to clarify the taxonomic position of V.formosa, often considered the closest to the extinct ancestor of the whole tribe. The analysis of four informative regions of plastid and nuclear DNA showed that V.formosa belongs to the same clade as Lathyrus and Pisum, with a distinct status. Preservation and maintenance of V.formosa remains the only basis for further development of all other scientific aspects, especially breeding and uses in agronomy.

Beauty will save the world, but will the world save beauty? The case of highly endangered Vavilovia formosa (Stev.) Fed.

Vavilovia formosa (Stev.) Fed. is a relict, endangered species from the highlands of Caucasus and Near East. It was described in 1812, with often uncertain status and finally recognised as a separate genus of the tribe Fabeae Rchb. Our informal international group was established in 2007 to revive the interest in this species since it had been seriously neglected for decades. This review gives an overview of the accumulated knowledge on V. formosa and presents the results of its most recent multidisciplinary research. Three expeditions were made to two locations in Armenia in 2009, providing the material for anatomical, morphological, chemical and molecular analysis. Unlike previous attempts, ex situ conservation in Yerevan and in vitro propagation, important for potential interspecies hybridisation, are successful. Molecular tools were used to clarify the taxonomical position of V. formosa, often considered the closest to the extinct ancestor of the whole tribe. The analysis of four informative regions of chloroplast and nuclear DNA showed that V. formosa belonged to the same clade with Lathyrus and Pisum and with a distinct status. Preservation and maintenance of V. formosa remains the only basis for further development of all other scientific aspects, especially breeding and uses in agronomy

Protoplast technology for the breeding of top-fruit trees (Prunus, Pyrus, Malus, Rubus) and woody ornamentals

International audienc

Somatic hybridization between Pyrus x Prunus species

Somatic hybridization between[i] Pyrus x Prunus[/i] specie

Assessments of graft-compatibility of somatic hybrids, Pyrus communis var., pyraster L. (+) Prunus avium x Pseudocerasus, and species of the subfamilies Pomoideae and Prunoideae, Rosaceae

Assessments of graft-compatibility of somatic hybrids, [i]Pyrus communis[/i] var., pyraster L. (+) [i]Prunus avium[/i] x [i]Pseudocerasus[/i], and species of the subfamilies Pomoideae and Prunoideae, Rosaceae. VII. International Congress on Plant Tissue and Cell Cultur

Plant regeneration from mesophyll protoplasts of shrubby honeysuckle, Lonicera nitida cv. maigrum

Plant regeneration from mesophyll protoplasts of shrubby honeysuckle,[i] Lonicera nitida[/i] cv. maigrum. VII. International Congress on Plant Tissue and Cell Cultur

PCTOC, 40 years on: an anniversary editorial

International audienc