Pollinia storage and viability assessment in Decalepis arayalpathra

Decalepis arayalpathra (J. Joseph and V. Chandras) Venter is a narrow endemic and endangered species found in the Western Ghats region. This study aimed to develop a successful protocol for the long-term preservation of its pollinia and evaluate their viability under different storage temperature regimes (−20 °C, −80 °C, and −196 °C). In vitro viability was assessed using modified Brewbaker and Kwack’s medium, and maximum pollinia germination (58%) was observed in a 15% sucrose solution. During storage, pollinia stored at −20 °C and −80 °C failed to germinate after the 2nd and 3rd days, respectively. However, pollinia preserved at −196 °C exhibited maximum (50.27 ± 0.01%) germination even after 30 months of storage, with no significant difference observed. These findings highlight the potential of cryopreservation in conserving germplasm and maintaining nuclear genetic diversity (NGD) in D. arayalpathra, thus contributing to its conservation efforts.