Main description:

Plants are a major source of medicines, flavors, fragrances, and various pharmaceutical and industrial products. Biotechnology is being put to the service for mass clonal propagation of plants, and to produce impor- tant secondary products in cell cultures. In some cases cell cultures ac- cumulate higher amounts of products than the intact plant cells in situ, and such cultures can be stored through immobilization and cryopreser- vation. An in vitro-produced anti-inflammatory drug, shikonin, has been commercialized, and the recent observations on the increased pro- duction of atropine and hyoscyamine by Agrobacterium rhizogenes- mediated transformed "hairy roots" have encouraged the acceptance of such biotechnologies by the pharmaceutical industry. In an earlier volume, Medicinal and Aromatic Plants I, various aspects of in-vitro culture of cells, bioreactors, micropropagation, im- mobilization, and cryopreservation were discussed. The present volume concerns the application of these biotechnologies to 29 genera of medicinal and aromatic plants.
It deals with the distribution, economic importance, conventional propagation, micro propagation, review of tissue culture studies, and the in-vitro production of important medicinal and pharmaceutical compounds in various species of Angelica, Anisodus, Basel/a, Bupleurum, Camellia, Co ix, Coptis, Cryp- tomeria, Datura, Dioscorea, Foeniculum, Gardenia, Geigeria, Heimia, Humulus, Hyoscyamus, Jasminum, Macleaya, Mucuna, Nicotiana, Pimpinel/a, Rauwolfia, Ruta, Salvia, So/anum, Saponaria, Stevia, Tabernaemontana, and Zingiber. The potential role of biotechnology for industrial production is discussed. Biotechnology enables the production and isolation of products of higher purity and also opens the possibility of making desired molecular alterations in products.

Contents:

I Angelica sinensis (Oliv.) Diels.: In Vitro Culture, Regeneration, and the Production of Medicinal Compounds.- 1 Introduction.- 2 In Vitro Culture Approaches.- 3 Conclusions and Prospects.- References.- II Anisodus acutangulus: Production of Scopolamine and Hyoscyamine in Cell Cultures.- 1 Introduction.- 2 In Vitro Approaches.- 3 Variants with Both Growth and Scopolamine Contents.- 4 Reduction of Cost of Cultures.- 5 Storage of Valuable Stock Cultures Through Cryopreservation.- 6 Conclusions.- References.- III Basella alba L.: In Vitro Culture and the Production of Betalains.- 1 Introduction.- 2 In Vitro Approaches.- 3 Protocols.- 4 Results and Discussion.- 5 Conclusions and Prospects.- References.- IV Bupleurum falcatum L.: Embryogenesis and the Production of Saikosaponins.- 1 Introduction.- 2 In Vitro Approaches.- 3 Conclusions and Prospects.- References.- V Camellia sinensis L. (Tea): In Vitro Regeneration.- 1 Introduction.- 2 In Vitro Culture Studies.- 3 Summary and Conclusion.- References.- VI Coix lacryma-jobi L. (Jobstears): In Vitro Regeneration.- 1 Introduction.- 2 In Vitro Approaches.- 3 Conclusion and Prospects.- References.- VII Coptis: In Vitro Regeneration of Plants and the Production of Berberine.- 1 Introduction.- 2 In Vitro Approaches.- 3 Fundamental Conditions for Growth and Alkaloid Formation.- 4 Differentiation of Coptis Plants In Vitro from Callus Cultures and Comparison of Alkaloid Content of Regenerated Plants.- 5 Effects of Cloning and Mutagen.- 6 Immobilized Cell.- 7 Berberine Production by Suspension Culture.- 8 Conclusion.- References.- VIII Cryptomeria japonica Don (Japanese Cedar): In Vitro Production of Volatile Oils.- 1 Introduction.- 2 In Vitro Approaches.- 3 Conclusion.- References.- IX Datura spp.: In Vitro Regeneration and the Production of Tropanes.- 1 Introduction.- 2 In Vitro Culture and Regeneration.- 3 Cryopreservation of Cell Cultures.- 4 Alkaloid Production in Datura.- 5 Summary and Conclusions.- References.- X Dioscorea: In Vitro Culture and the Micropropagation of Diosgenin-Containing Species.- 1 Introduction.- 2 In Vitro Approaches.- 3 Conclusions and Perspectives.- References.- XI Foeniculum vulgare Miller: Cell Culture, Regeneration, and the Production of Anethole.- 1 Introduction.- 2 In Vitro Culture of Fennel.- 3 Somatic Embryogenesis and Fennel Breeding.- 4 Secondary Metabolites from Tissue Cultures.- 5 Protocols for In Vitro Culture of Fennel.- 6 Conclusion: In Vitro Culture Impact on Fennel Improvement.- References.- XII Gardenia jasminoides Ellis: In Vitro Propagation and the Formation of Iridoid Glucosides.- 1 Introduction.- 2 In Vitro Culture Studies.- 3 Summary.- 4 Protocol.- References.- XIII Geigeria aspera Harv.: In Vitro Culture and Medicinal Value of Sesquiterpene Lactones.- 1 Introduction.- 2 Morphology and Distribution of Geigeria aspera Harv..- 3 Sesquiterpene Lactones.- 4 In Vitro Culture of Geigeria aspera.- References.- XIV Heimia salicifolia: In Vitro Culture and the Production of Phenyl- and Biphenylquinolizidines.- 1 Introduction.- 2 In Vitro Approaches.- 3 Conclusions.- 4 Suggested Protocol.- References.- XV Humulus lupulus L. (Hop): In Vitro Culture; Attempted Production of Bittering Components and Novel Disease Resistance.- 1 Introduction.- 2 In Vitro Approaches.- 3 Conclusions and Prospects.- 4 Protocol.- References.- XVI Hyoscyamus spp.: In Vitro Culture and the Production of Tropane Alkaloids.- 1 Introduction.- 2 The Plant.- 3 In Vitro Approaches.- 4 Conclusions and Prospects.- 5 Protocol for Tropane Alkaloid Production by H. muticus Cell Culture.- References.- XVII Jasminum spp. (Jasmine): Micropropagation and the Production of Essential Oils.- 1 Introduction.- 2 In Vitro Cultivation.- 3 Essential Oils of Jasmine.- 4 Conclusions.- References.- XVIII Macleaya spp.: Morphogenesis and the Production of Secondary Metabolites.- 1 Introduction.- 2 Developmental Investigations on Cell Cultures.- 3 Investigations on Alkaloid Formation, Enzymology, and Catabolic Processes in Cell Cultures.- 4 Summary and Concluding Remarks.- 5 Protocol.- References.- XIX Mucuna pruriens: In Vitro Production of L-DOPA.- 1 Introduction.- 2 In Vitro Approaches.- 3 Conclusions and Prospects.- References.- XX Nicotiana tabacum L. (Tobacco): In Vitro Production of Nicotine.- 1 Introduction.- 2 In Vivo Production of Nicotine.- 3 In Vitro Production of Nicotine.- 4 Summary.- References.- XXI Pimpinella anisum L. (Anise): Cell Culture, Somatic Embryogenesis, and the Production of Anise Oil.- 1 Introduction.- 2 In Vitro Studies.- 3 Extraction and Structure of Compounds.- 4 Protocol.- 5 Conclusions.- References.- XXII Rauwolfia serpentina: In Vitro Culture and the Production of Ajmaline.- 1 Introduction.- 2 In Vitro Approaches.- 3 Conclusions.- References.- XXIII Salvia miltiorrhiza: In Vitro Production of Cryptotanshinone and Ferruginol.- 1 Introduction.- XXIV Saponaria officinalis L.: In Vitro Culture and the Production of Triterpenoidal Saponins.- 1 Introduction.- 2 In Vitro Approaches.- 3 Conclusion and Prospects.- 4 Protocol.- References.- XXV Solanum aviculare Forst., Solanum laciniatum Ait. (Poroporo): In Vitro Culture and the Production of Solasodine.- 1 Introduction.- 2 In Vitro Approaches.- 3 Conclusions and Prospects.- 4 Protocol.- References.- XXVI Stevia rebaudiana (Bert.) Bertoni: Production of Natural Sweeteners.- 1 General Account.- 2 Tissue Culture of Stevia rebaudiana.- 3 Concluding Remarks.- References.- XXVII Ruta graveolens: In Vitro Production of Alkaloids and Medicinal Compounds.- 1 Introduction.- 2 In Vitro Approaches.- 3 Conclusions.- References.- XXVIII Tabernaemontana spp.: In Vitro Production of Indole and Biogenetically Related Alkaloids.- 1 Introduction.- 2 Cell and Tissue Cultures of Tabernaemontaneae Species.- 3 Conclusions and Prospects.- References.- XXIX Zingiber officinale Roscoe (Ginger): In Vitro Propagation and the Production of Volatile Constituents.- 1 Introduction.- 2 In Vitro Approaches.- 3 Conclusions and Prospects.- References.