In Vitro Propagation of Aconitum chasmanthum Stapf Ex Holmes: An Endemic and Critically Endangered Plant Species of the Western Himalaya

Aconitum chasmanthum Stapf ex Holmes, a highly valued medicinal plant, is a critically endangered plant species with restricted global distribution. Because there is no published report on the in vitro micropropagation of A. chasmanthum, the present study was undertaken to contribute to the development of an efficient micropropagation protocol for its conservation. Seeds collected from the wild showed enhanced germination after being given a chilling treatment (−4 °C and −20 °C) for different durations (10, 20, 30 and 40 days). Seeds given a chilling treatment of −4 °C for 10 days showed enhanced germination rates of 47.59 ± 0.53% with a mean germination time of 10.78 ± 0.21 days compared to seeds kept at room temperature when grown in an MS basal medium. Nodes, leaves and stems, taken from 20–40-day-old seedlings, were used as an explant for micropropagation. An MS medium supplemented with different concentrations of cytokinins (BAP, Kn), auxins (2,4-D, NAA), and an additive adenine sulphate were tested for callusing, direct shoot regeneration and rooting. Only nodal explants responded and showed direct multiple shoot regeneration with 7 ± 0.36 shoots with an elongation of 5.51 ± 0.26 cm in the MS medium supplemented with BAP 0.5 mg/L, and with a response time (RT) of 10.41 ± 0.51 days and a percentage culture response of 77.77 ± 2.77%. Rhizome formation was observed after 8 weeks, with the highest culture response of 36.66 ± 3.33% in the MS basal media with an RT of 43.75 ± 0.50 days. These rhizomes showed a 60% germination rate within 2 weeks and developed into plantlets. The present in vitro regeneration protocol could be used for the large-scale propagation and conservation of A. chasmanthum.

Woody and semi-woody species in the collection “Rare and endangered plant species of Siberia” (Novosibirsk)

. The article presents the results of the conservation of woody and semi-woody species under introductionconditions in the collection “Rare and endangered plant species of Siberia” of the Central Siberian Botanical Garden (Novosibirsk). This collection was founded in 1965 years. The analysis of the fund of this collection is carried out. For a longtime (more than 10 years), 22 woody and semi-woody species from 14 families from 8 regions of Siberia are grown in thecollection. Four species are endemic: Sedum populifolium Pallas, Cotoneaster lucidus Schlecht., Sibiraea altaiensis (Laxm.)Schneider and Tilia sibirica Fisher ex Bayer. Most of the species are represented in the collection by small populations. Thisis due to the problems of reproduction of species in the conditions of culture, for many of which methods of vegetative andseed reproduction have not been developed. The traditional method of reproduction used for herbaceous plants – laboratory-greenhouse-soil. This method is often ineffective for woody species due to the long pregenerative period and low biological longevity of seeds. In the introduction, microecological conditions are selected for each species, since they belongto different ecological groups. Among the introduced species there are 13 mesophytes, 8 xerophytes, 1 xeromesophyte. Thearticle presents literary and original information about the methods of reproduction of cultivated species.

DEVELOPMENT OF A CROWDSOURCING INTERNET PORTAL FOR THE DETECTION AND CONTROL OF THE NUMBER OF RARE AND ENDANGERED PLANT SPECIES IN THE URBAN ECOSYSTEM ON THE EXAMPLE OF KURSK

Currently, at least 10% of plant species and even more animals are threatened with extinction on the planet Earth. The rate of extinction of species is 50-100 times higher than the natural rate. This trend has continued over the past 20-25 years. There are 439 endangered species in the Kursk region. Of these, 160 species of fauna, 265 species of plants and 14 species of fungi. The problem of conservation of rare and endangered plant species can be solved by their timely detection, subsequent monitoring and protection in specific habitats. Based on this, the purpose of this study is to develop tools for creating the most complete databases of rare and endangered plant species in urban ecosystems based on crowdsourcing methods and modern information technologies. At the initial stage of the implementation of projects for the conservation of biodiversity, the main difficulty lies in the mass identification of the presence of plant and animal species that are subject to protection on the territory of the city. It is possible to solve this problem using crowdsourcing methods. The team of the Southwestern State University has developed an Environmental crowdsourcing portal of the Kursk Region. This portal is designed on a modular basis, it includes various modules, including a module designed to solve the problem of biodiversity conservation. The module is developed using HTML5, CSS3, JavaScript, PHP and functions in user and administrator modes. Additionally, the functional blocks of thematic databases are designed using MySQL. Based on the database tables and the Yandex Maps API documentation, blocks for loading and displaying information on an interactive map have been developed. The module ensures the involvement of a wide range of urban population to identify the presence of plant and animal species that are subject to protection on the territory of the city. The module of the Environmental Crowdsourcing Portal of the Kursk Region considered in the article provides not only a solution to the problem of filling the database of rare and endangered species of plants and animals, but, like all crowdsourcing environmental projects, contributes to improving the level of environmental education of citizens, forming their consciousness and active life position.