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Trends in accumulation of ephedrine in callus cultures of Ephedra major Host

  • Plant Tissue Culture
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Abstract

Ephedra major Host, a medicinal plant, belongs to the family of Ephedraceae. Ephedrine is the main alkaloid in Ephedra, which has different medicinal properties. However, the amount of ephedrine in plant material is low and callus culture can be a way to increase the alkaloid content. The aim of this research was to compare Murashige and Skoog (MS) and Gamborg’s B5 culture media for callus induction and ephedrine production. For this purpose, stem explants were cultured on MS or B5 media containing 0.0, 0.5, 1.0, 2.0, or 3.0 mg L−1 of kinetin (Kin) either alone or in combination with 0.0, 0.5, 1.0, or 2.0 mg L−1 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) and/or naphthalenacetic acid (NAA), in five replicates. MS medium containing 1.0 or 2.0 NAA and 0.5 mg L−1 Kin were the most effective for callus induction. The highest percentage of callus induction (100%) on B5 culture medium was obtained with 2.0 2,4-D and 0.5 mg L−1 Kin treatments. The results showed that there was no significant difference between MS and B5 media for callus induction, and fresh and dry weight production. High-performance liquid chromatography was conducted for the identification and quantification of ephedrine in the obtained callus. The highest level of ephedrine (7.38 mg g−1 DW) was found in callus grown on MS medium containing 0.5 mg L−1 of 2,4-D. The results revealed that ephedrine can accumulate in callus cultures to levels much higher than in E. major wild plants.

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Acknowledgements

We thank the Golestan University Deputy of Research and Office of Higher Education for financial support to Elham Abbasipadari in the form of grants for M.Sc. research project.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Golestan University, Gorgan, Golestan, Iran

    Mahnaz Aghdasi, Elham Abbasi Padari & Manijeh Mianabadi

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  1. Mahnaz Aghdasi
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  2. Elham Abbasi Padari
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  3. Manijeh Mianabadi
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Correspondence to Mahnaz Aghdasi.

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Editor: Praveen Saxena

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Aghdasi, M., Padari, E.A. & Mianabadi, M. Trends in accumulation of ephedrine in callus cultures of Ephedra major Host. In Vitro Cell.Dev.Biol.-Plant 54, 465–474 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11627-018-9887-0

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