USE of BIOTECHNOLOGY in ORIGANUM SPECIES

Oregano is one of the most commonly known culinary herbs that are used world wide in cooking. Also oregano is well known as the 'pizza herb' and widely used in Mexican and Italian cooking. Some of the Origanum species are also used as a fragrance component in soap, detergents, perfumes, cosmetics, flavorings, and pharmaceuticals. Oregano oil is well known for its ability to slow down food spoilage through its antibacterial, antifungal, antiparasitic, antimicrobial, and antioxidant activity. Carvacrol and thymol are major phenols present in oregano oil with antiseptic properties. The present study was undertaken to standardize media for Origanum species in which plants could be regenerated easily in high numbers by callus culture, and to show its antimicrobial properties. This book, therefore, provides new information about use of oregano oil as a disinfestation agent in tissue culture, callus culture of Origanum species and transient expression of the GUS reporter gene has not been reported yet in Origanum species. This book could be especially useful and shed some light on 'improvement of oregano by using biotechnology'