Ethno-medicinal

Ashwagandha, A popular medicinal plant of family Solanaceae is well known for years as an important drug in ayurvedic literature. The active pharmacological components of Ashwagandha are steroid allactones of the withanolide type. Several chemotypes have been found differing in their withanilide content. The principal withanolide in Indian Withania somnifera are withaferin A and withanilide D. In vitro morphogenesis experiments were conducted using various auxins and cytokinins on MS medium. Direct shoot induction was obtained on 2, 4-D (2 mg/l); IAA (4 mg/l) and NAA (1 mg/l). Kn (1.5 mg/l) was found to be very effective for shoot buds proliferation. Various combinations of NAA and BAP; NAA and Kn, were tested for direct shoot bud induction. It was found that combination of NAA (1 mg/l) & BAP (0.5 mg/l) gave maximum response of shoot induction. Average no. of shoots induced was 7.8.