Tephrosia vogelii Hook f.: In Vitro Culture, and the Production of Rotenoids and Other Secondary Metabolites

Abstract

Rotenone and its derivatives are well known for their insecticidal properties. They occur naturally as constituents of the roots, stems, and leaves of many leguminous species of the genera Derris, Lonchocarpus, Tephrosia, and Amorpha (Harborne 1971; Menichini et al. 1982). For several centuries, these plants have been used to prepare hunting and fishing poisons. More recently, rotenoids have become of much interest because of their selectivity and low environmental hazard. They are highly toxic to insects and lower animal forms; but relatively nontoxic to plants and mammals. They offer a distinct advantage over synthetic insecticides because they are biologically active at basic metabolic levels, less likely to lose their effectiveness through the development of tolerance, and are readily degraded in the environment to nontoxic organic acids (Moring and McChesnay 1979).