PERSPECTIVE: Challenges and recent progress on the use of cryobiotechnology for conserving Brazilian native plants

Brazil is a megadiverse country with continental dimensions. It is long acknowledged as the richest country in plant diversity, encompassing approximately 20% of the world’s flora, with more than 50,000 species of plants, algae and fungi distributed in six major biomes, including two biodiversity hotspots. However, significant environmental challenges, primarily driven by climate changes and intensive, non-sustainable land use practices, have led to widespread deforestation, habitat reduction and, consequently, shifts in species distribution, genetic erosion and increased vulnerability. Considering the high rates of endemism and the global economic value of numerous Brazilian native species as crops and wild relatives, ornamentals and medicinal plants, cryopreservation emerges as a fundamental ex situ complementary strategy to safeguard its plant genetic resources. This article aims to provide a comprehensive overview of cryopreservation of native plants in Brazil during the past decade, which shows that more than 85 species from 23 families have been cryopreserved. Methods for assessing cryoinjury at the morphophysiological, biochemical, molecular and metabolic levels are reviewed. The main challenges, as well as future perspectives for the cryopreservation of Brazilian floristic diversity, are also discussed.