Enhancing Jatropha curcas Micropropagation through Optimized Hypochlorite Concentrations: A Comparative Evaluation of Various Explant Types

The micropropagation of Jatropha curcas, a multipurpose, drought-resistant perennial plant from the Euphorbiaceous family was investigated to optimize tissue culture techniques for enhancing crop yield and ensuring disease-free plant production between March 2023 and December 2023 at the Laboratory of Plant Improvement Unit, Agricultural Biotechnology Department, National Biotechnology Development Agency (NABDA), Lugbe, Abuja, Nigeria. This study focused on evaluating the effectiveness of three seed treatments; Cut Plain (CTPL), Cut with Back (CTBK), and Embryo treated with 50%, 30%, and 10% Hypochlorite solutions over an 8-week period. The experiment was designed to compare the survival rates of seeds subjected to these treatments, with observations recorded biweekly. Major difference was observed in the rate of survival among the treatments. The Embryo treatment with 50%, Hypochlorite solution consistently demonstrated the highest survival rates, with an average of 4.58 surviving seeds out of 5, even after 8 weeks. The CTPL and CTBK treatments showed almost equal results, with a mean survival rate of 2. The data obtained from the research were analyzed using analysis of variance (ANOVA). The ANOVA yielded an F-value of 18.90, and the corresponding p-value was approximately 0.00000339, indicating a highly significant difference between the treatments. These findings underscore the superiority of the Embryo treatment for the micropropagation of Jatropha curcas, suggesting it as the most effective technique for achieving high survival rates and rapid growth. The study concludes that the Embryo treatment with 50%, Hypochlorite solution is the optimal method for micropropagation of Jatropha curcas, with significant implications for improving the efficiency of tissue culture protocols and contributing to the plant’s commercial viability for biofuel production and medicinal applications. Future research could explore further optimization of this method or investigate additional treatments to enhance propagation success.