In this study, growth parameters of underground parts and concentrations of phenylpropanoids, phenylethanoids, flavonoids, hydroxybenzoic acids, and catechins in aqueous-ethanol extracts of ...6-year-old cultivated plants of
(propagated in vitro) of Altai Mountain origin were analyzed, and differences in chemical composition among plant specimens and between plant parts (rhizome and root) were evaluated. High-performance liquid chromatography detected 13 phenolic compounds. Roots contained 1.28 times higher phenylethanoids levels (1273.72 mg/100 g) than rhizomes did. Overall, the concentration of phenylethanoids in underground organs was not high and ranged from 21.36 to 103.00 mg/100 g. High variation among
individual plants was noted both in growth characteristics and in levels of secondary metabolites under our cultivation conditions. It was found that concentrations of phenylpropanoids, phenylethanoids, and catechins significantly depend on the plant part analyzed (
≤ 0.05). Specimen No. 4 is characterized by the highest concentration of rosavins (1230.99 mg/plant) and the lowest concentration of cinnamyl alcohol (62.87 mg/plant). Despite the wide range of values, all 10 tested specimens (underground part) met the minimum requirements of the United States Pharmacopeia (2015) for rosavins (0.3%) and of the Russia State Pharmacopoeia (2015) for the average level of rosavins (roots): (1%).
For the first time, nuclear genome size and ploidy of five
Nitraria
species from 49 populations were examined by flow cytometry. All populations were also analyzed for the chromosome number. We ...identified significant differences in the 2C nuclear DNA content among the analyzed species, and this parameter correlated with their ploidy. Diploid (2n = 2x = 24) species
N. sibirica
and
N. tangutorum
were found to have smaller genome size (1.24–1.34 and 1.57–1.65 pg) as compared to tetraploid (2n = 4x = 48) species
N. komarovii
(2.23–2.32 pg),
N. pamirica
(3.10–3.30 pg), and
N. schoberi
(2.93–3.39 pg). Intra-population genome size variation was found in examined species, varying from 1.01 to 1.08-fold.
Nitraria sibirica
has lower inter-population variation of the 2C (1.08-fold) as compared to
N. schoberi
(1.16-fold). All the
Nitraria
species are mixoploids. It turned out that an increase in the equatorial axis of
Nitraria
pollen is associated with an increase in 2C and 1Cx. An exception is
N. komarovii
, with its intermediate 2C DNA content and the smallest pollen grains. In general, our data confirm Bobrov's previous views on the system of the genus
Nitraria
, which distinguished ser.
Sibiricae
and ser.
Schoberianae
in sect.
Nitraria.
A new species,
sp. nov., is described from the Ili basin, Almaty region, Kazakhstan. It belongs to section
and is morphologically similar to
Pall. An integrative taxonomic approach based on ...molecular, biochemical and morphological analyses, along with palynological data, was used to delimit this new species. The studied species of the genus are illustrated, and photographs of authentic specimens of the new species, as well as a distribution map of the new species and segregate taxa, are provided. Morphological characters were investigated, more important traits for identification were found, and a new key to distinguish between all species of the genus was prepared.
L. is a valuable medicinal plant with adaptogenic, neuroprotective, antitumor, cardioprotective, and antidepressant effects. In this study, design of experiments methodology was employed to analyze ...and optimize the interacting effects of mineral compounds (concentration of NO
and the ratio of NH
to K
) and two plant growth regulators total 6-benzylaminopurine (BAP) and α-naphthylacetic acid (NAA) concentration and the ratio of BAP to NAA on the growth and the production of total phenolic compounds (TPCs) in
calluses. The overall effect of the model was highly significant (
< 0.0001), indicating that NH
, K
, NO
, BAP, and NAA significantly affected growth. The best callus growth (703%) and the highest production of TPCs (75.17 mg/g) were achieved at an NH
/K
ratio of 0.33 and BAP/NAA of 0.33, provided that the concentration of plant growth regulators was 30 μM and that of NO
was ≤40 mM. According to high-performance liquid chromatography analyses of aerial parts (leaves and stems), in vitro seedlings and callus cultures of
contain no detectable rosarin, rosavin, rosin, and cinnamyl alcohol. This is the first report on the creation of an experiment for the significant improvement of biomass accumulation and TPC production in callus cultures of
.
Species of the genus
Atraphaxis
are xerophytic shrubs growing in steppe and semidesert habitats on various soil types, including saline ones. Despite much interest in
Atraphaxis
species as sources of ...phenolic and polyphenolic compounds, information on approaches to the cultivation of these plants’ tissues is not available in the literature. In this study, an in vitro technology of
A. frutescens
propagation was developed for the first time. The Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium supplemented with 0.5 µM 6-benzylaminopurine was chosen as optimal. Microshoots were successfully rooted on the ½ MS medium without auxins or supplemented with 1 µM indole-3-butyric acid. All the media regarding the in vitro propagation contained 3% of sucrose and 0.6% of agar. The subcultivation period was 30 days. The
A. frutescens in vitro
culture showed resistance to osmotic stress (up to 150 mM D-mannitol) and to a wide pH range: 3.8 to 8.3. Under the influence of the culture medium, there was an increase in concentrations of catechins, tannins, phenolic acids, and saponins and in the total phenolic content and a decrease in the levels of flavonols as compared to a natural sample. Cultivation of samples on culture media with D-mannitol reduced the levels of flavonols and phenolic acids as compared to a control medium. The highest concentrations of tannins, catechins, and flavonols were noted at pH 8.3, and the same was true for saponins at pH 3.8. Meanwhile, no significant correlations were found between phenolic compounds and antiradical activity. Thus, in vitro culture of
A. frutescens
microshoots can serve as an alternative source of valuable classes of secondary metabolites such as catechins, tannins, saponins, and phenolic acids. In future studies, to create large-scale in vitro systems of
A. frutescens
, the selection of a proper bioreactor type and optimization of process parameters will be crucial for maximizing secondary-metabolite production.
Key Message
This is the first report of an efficient in vitro methodology for
Atraphaxis frutescens
propagation and offers a tool for implementation of its conservation and for obtaining valuable secondary metabolites.
This study evaluates phytoecdysteroid (PE) biosynthesis stability and the effect of methyl jasmonate (MJ) on changing their accumulation over 25 subculture cycles of
Silene linicola
hairy roots. High ...performance liquid chromatography was used to determine PE content. We find a significant change in the biosynthesis level of PEs as a whole, as well as individual components such as 20-hydroxyecdysone (20E) and turkesterone, under prolonged cultivation of
S. linicola
hairy roots. The maximum 20E content was observed in a sample of the 7th subcultivation cycle (0.189%), whereas the maximum level of turkesterone—the 9th cycle (0.044%). We found that without application of MJ, the main component of total PEs in hairy roots becomes 20E during the 7th to 25th subcultivation cycles, with percentages of 51.9; 25.4; 79.1 and ~ 100% in 7th, 9th, 21st and 25th cycles, respectively. Using the elicitor changes this pattern. The smallest ratio of 20E to the PE sum was 8.2% and turkesterone becomes the major component (53%), detected during the 9th passage treated with MJ. Our data suggest that total PE and individual component content should be monitored along with 20E level, as biosynthetic activity of these components in
S. linicola
hairy roots varies with cultivation stage.
The most serious problem of intergeneric and interspecific hybridization is related to overcoming the reproductive isolation of different species. We assessed the efficiency of reproduction under in ...vitro conditions and the ex vitro growth capacity of interspecific hybrids of Vaccinium uliginosum × (V. corymbosum × V. angustifolium). The percentage of seed germination in in vitro culture was 88% for V. uliginosum, form No. 8 × (V. corymbosum × V. angustifolium), SC5-8, while it was 42% for V. uliginosum, form No. 8 × (V. corymbosum × V. angustifolium), ‘Northcountry’. The analysis of mean value showed that the multiplication rate increased and the shoot height decreased as the 2-isopentenyl adenine (2iP) concentration was increased in the nutrient medium of the studied hybrids. The maximum rate was achieved using 15 μM 2iP. A detailed analysis of the hybrids indicated that the hybrid variant reliably affected growth and development indicators. Inter simple sequence repeat analysis demonstrated that all analyzed hybrids inherited DNA fragments of the parent plants in various combinations, confirming their hybrid nature. Thus, the use of in vitro methods for the propagation and further selection of genotypes is demonstrated as being an effective approach for developing interspecific hybrids of V. uliginosum × (V. corymbosum × V. angustifolium).
A rare species
Hedysarum chaiyrakanicum
and a highly polymorphic species
H. gmelini
were first introduced into
in vitro
culture. It was shown that MS supplemented by 5 µM BAP is optimal medium for ...micropropagation of
H. gmelini
from 90-1 and 92-1 subpopulations, medium with 1 µM BAP is optimal for micropropagation of
H. chaiyrakanicum
from 45-2 subpopulation, and 10 µM BAP – for
H. chaiyrakanicum
from 45-1 subpopulation. Seedlings obtained from the seeds of
H. gmelinii
collected from the subpopulation no. 88 demonstrated a higher tendency to callus formation using BAP. It was also found that
in vitro
culture of
H. chaiyrakanikum
was characterized by a higher reproduction rate then
H. gmelinii in vitro
culture.
Methyl jasmonate (MeJ) affects the regulation of secondary metabolism, and it is considered to be a promising elicitor in the culture of cells, tissues and plant organs. High-performance liquid ...chromatography method was used to identify the composition of ecdysteroids in
hairy roots
of
Silene linicola
. MeJ was found to have a stimulating effect on ecdysteroid biosynthesis in this culture. Addition of MeJ at a concentration of 100 μM increased the biosynthesis of 20-hydroxyecdysone by 74% (day 3), and that of turkesterone by 35% (day 6). The share of turkesterone in total ecdysteroid content in the investigated samples was up to 60%, and the content of 20-hydroxyecdysone was up to 30%. The study shows that MeJ is a promising stimulator of ecdysteroid biosynthesis in
hairy roots
of
S. linicola
.
In this study, growth parameters of underground parts and concentrations of phenylpropanoids, phenylethanoids, flavonoids, hydroxybenzoic acids, and catechins in aqueous–ethanol extracts of ...6-year-old cultivated plants of Rhodiola rosea (propagated in vitro) of Altai Mountain origin were analyzed, and differences in chemical composition among plant specimens and between plant parts (rhizome and root) were evaluated. High-performance liquid chromatography detected 13 phenolic compounds. Roots contained 1.28 times higher phenylethanoids levels (1273.72 mg/100 g) than rhizomes did. Overall, the concentration of phenylethanoids in underground organs was not high and ranged from 21.36 to 103.00 mg/100 g. High variation among R. rosea individual plants was noted both in growth characteristics and in levels of secondary metabolites under our cultivation conditions. It was found that concentrations of phenylpropanoids, phenylethanoids, and catechins significantly depend on the plant part analyzed (p ≤ 0.05). Specimen No. 4 is characterized by the highest concentration of rosavins (1230.99 mg/plant) and the lowest concentration of cinnamyl alcohol (62.87 mg/plant). Despite the wide range of values, all 10 tested specimens (underground part) met the minimum requirements of the United States Pharmacopeia (2015) for rosavins (0.3%) and of the Russia State Pharmacopoeia (2015) for the average level of rosavins (roots): (1%).