IDENTIFICATION AND MICROPROPAGATION OF VIRUS-FREE BLACK PEPPER GENOTYPES (Piper nigrum L.)

Virus infections are a major constraint for black pepper cultivation (Piper nigrum L.), a vegetatively propagated crop; therefore, the in vitro selection of virus- free plants is an alternative to reestablish phytosanitary quality of pepper culture. The aim of this study was to select and micropropagate PYMoV virus-free pepper plants. ‘Apra’, ‘Bragantina’, ‘Cingapura’, ‘Clonada’, hybrids and ‘Kottanadan’ genotypes were used in the indexing process. From these, ‘Cingapura’, ‘Clonada’, hybrids and ‘Kottanadan’ were virus free, and only ‘Cingapura’ and ‘Clonada’ were selected for micropropagation. In the multiplication phase, ‘Cingapura’ genotype showed higher multiplication rate in relation to ‘Clonada’ in in vitro rooting and in acclimatization, response was similar in both genotypes. It was possible to identify virus-free genotypes of commercial interest, selecting them for micropropagation, and in this stage, influence of genotype is of great importance.