Mesophyll protoplasts of fenugreek (Trigonella foenumgraecum): Isolation, culture and shoot regeneration.

High yields of mesophyll protoplasts were obtained after treatment of leaves of Trigonella foenumgraecum, a forage legume, with purified cellulase. Under appropriate conditions of culture up to 70% plating efficiency could be obtained. The protoplast-derived colonies developed into rapidly growing green calli and produced leafy shoots on a medium containing 0.1 mg/l each of benzylaminopurine (BAP) and zeatin. Addition of glutamine and asparagine to the medium was found essential for rapid cell division, callus growth and differentiation.