Factors Influencing In Vitro Conservation of Vanilla Species in Minimal Growth

Vanilla planifolia is of great importance in the food and cosmetic industry. V. planifolia is currently reported to be at risk. This is due to overharvesting, habitat destruction, and loss of wild specimens. Therefore, it is important to undertake actions for the rescue, characterization, and conservation of this important phytogenetic resource. Plant biotechnology provides several very useful techniques in the development of conservation programs for endangered plant species. These include the conservation of germplasm in vitro using the slow growth technique, which allows the conservation of many individuals under controlled conditions for several months. However, the development of a protocol for in vitro preservation is a rigorous procedure that involves the optimization of different factors: chemical, physical and molecular. Therefore, in this chapter, we will review the advances in the slow-growth preservation of V. planifolia.