Current status of the cryopreservation of embryogenic material of woody species.

Cryopreservation, or the storage at liquid nitrogen temperatures (-196°C), of embryogenic cells or somatic embryos allows their long-term conservation without loss of their embryogenic capacity. During the last decade, protocols for cryopreservation of embryogenic material of woody species have been increasing in number and importance. However, despite the large experimental evidence proved in thousands of embryogenic lines, the application for the large-scale conservation of embryogenic material in cryobanks is still limited.

Proteomic and Metabolic Analysis of Mill. Embryonal Masses Induced under Heat Stress.

Understanding the physiological and molecular adjustments occurring during tree stress response is of great importance for forest management and breeding programs. Somatic embryogenesis has been used as a model system to analyze various processes occurring during embryo development, including stress response mechanisms. In addition, "priming" plants with heat stress during somatic embryogenesis seems to favor the acquisition of plant resilience to extreme temperature conditions.

Testing Explant Sources, Culture Media, and Light Conditions for the Improvement of Organogenesis in (P. Lawson and C. Lawson).

(P. Lawson and C. Lawson) is a commercial tree and one of the most important forest species in North America.

Somatic Embryogenesis in Pines.

Among the different in vitro culture techniques, somatic embryogenesis has been one of the most important developments for plant tissue culture; it has enabled mass propagation and the development of biotechnological tools to enhance the productivity and quality of plantation forestry. This propagation technique together with cryopreservation is the base of multivarietal forestry.The development of somatic embryogenesis in forest trees dates from 1985, and in the last years several studies have focused on the development and optimization of the conifer somatic embryogenesis process to make it more efficient in terms of both the quantity and the characteristics of the plants obtained.