The genus Lycoris has 20
species and it belongs to family Amaryllidaceae (USDA/GRIN 2010). These unique
bulb plants are native to Eastern and Southern Asia and freely occur in
temperate and tropical regions and thus have heat tolerance mechanisms that are
suitable for their adaptability to urban environments. They are also
naturalized in Alabama and other southeastern states in the U.S. where they are
variously called hurricane lily and spider lily. Most species have a unique
growth habit. With the warming trend, it is expected that they will expand
their native and naturalized range in the U.S. and China. Efforts are underway
in China to improve their adaptability to heat islands created in urban
landscapes and to improve rapid micropropagation of Lycoris spp. with superior leaf and flower retention attributes.
During a recent trip to Nanjing Forestry University considerable time was spent
in developing long-term collaboration with Dr. Jian Zhou’s group as they are
working on Lycoris spp. extensively.
Their group consists of six graduate students, one post-doctoral associate and
several undergraduate students. Lycoris
spp. are native to Jiangsu Province and also naturalized in Alabama, therefore
we are proposing to expose REU students to the principles and practice of
tissue culture and micropropagation. Considerable work has been completed in
the study of the effect of explant type, auxin, cytokinin, salt and sucrose
concentration on differentiation in China (Zhu et al. 2002). Research in cell
and tissue culture is well developed at AAMU also (Beyl and Sharma 1983, Kelley
et al. 2002 and 2004, Sakhanokho et al. 2004) on both monocot and dicot
species. Similarly, Dr. Jian Zhou has an active laboratory with excellent
facilities consisting of media preparation lab, laminar flow hoods, microscopy
lab and plant growth chambers. In addition, REU students will have an
opportunity to observe cell and tissue culture systems for many other plant
species such as Populus deltoides and
its hybrids, Chinese fir, Gingko and landscape plants that are being worked on
at NFU. These species are being planted in rapidly expanding urban landscapes
while Lycoris spp. in Alabama have
been utilized in both rural and urban home landscapes. Lecture and hands-on
tissue culture opportunity will be provided to REU students. In China three
explant sources of two species of Lycoris will be selected in Zhou Lab. The
starting culture material will be leaf explants, mature and immature embryos
and also sections of plantlets in culture. Advance preparation the Zhou
laboratory will occur that will provide established cultures for the students
to subculture and observe some differentiation in callus tissues while they are
there. Students will also travel to parts of Jiangsu and neighboring Anhui
province to observe lilies growing in native forested land and will also
observe them in urban plantings in Shanghai where they will be under urban heat
stress. Students will be able to also test the effect of media composition on
the rate of growth and differentiation of tissues in vitro because of prior
preparation. They will initiate their study of cell culture methodologies and
cell culture techniques prior to going to China and will have completed their
final report in China upon their return.