MICONAZOLE - AN EFFECTIVE ANTIFUNGAL AGENT FOR PLANT-TISSUE CULTURE

Miconazole at concentrations between 5 and 20 mg l-1 inhibited hyphal growth and sporulation in a wide range of fungi commonly associated with plants. These fungi included 4 Oomycetes, 11 Deuteromycetes, 4 Ascomycetes and 4 common airborne contaminants of plant tissue culture. The phytotoxicity of 20 mg l-1 miconazole was also tested against a wide range of in vitro plant cultures. Shoot cultures from 15 species showed either no response or a slight growth reduction in the presence of miconazole. Although the growth of shoot cultures in 2 other species was significantly reduced by miconazole, a positive growth rate was maintained. Callus and hairy root cultures from 5 species were more sensitive to miconazole than shoot cultures, although they also retained a positive growth rate in the presence of the antifungal agent. Reconstruction experiments demonstrated the effectiveness miconazole had for the rescue of plant material from in vitro cultures contaminated from fungi.