Open Access

ARTICLE

Examination of camptothecin and 10-hydroxycamptothecin in Camptotheca acuminata plant and cell culture, and the affected yields under several cell culture treatments

by YAN PI1, KEJI JIANG2, RONG HOU, YIFU GONG, JUAN LIN, XIAOFEN SUN, AND KEXUAN TANG

1. State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, School of Life Sciences, Morgan-Tan International Center for Life Sciences, Fudan-SJTU-Nottingham Plant Biotechnology R&D Center, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, P. R. China
2. East China Sea Fisheries Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, Shanghai 200090, P. R. China
3. Faculty of Life Science and Biotechnology, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315211, P. R. China 4. Plant Biotechnology Research Center, School of Agriculture and Biology, Fudan-SJTU-Nottingham Plant Biotechnology R&D Center, Institute of Systems Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200030, P. R. China

*Address correspondence to: Kexuan Tang. E-mail:

BIOCELL 2010, 34(3), 139-144. https://doi.org/10.32604/biocell.2010.34.139

Abstract

Camptothecin and its derivatives are monoterpenoid indole alkaloids exhibiting significant anti-tumor actions. With the aim of improving the production of these pharmaceuticals, the contents of camptothecin and 10-hydroxycamptothecin in different tissues including roots, stems, leaves, young flower buds, opening flowers, fading flowers and seeds from Camptotheca acuminata, were investigated. The young flower buds had the highest alkaloid concentrations (camptothecin, 2.46 mg/g of dry weight; 10- hydroxycamptothecin, 1.41 mg/g of dry weight). Callus showed lower concentrations but it should also be considered as a potential source of these pharmaceuticals. In the present study, the growth rate of Camptotheca acuminata cells in culture did not correlate with contents of camptothecin and 10-hydroxycamptothecin. Alkaloid accumulation by cells under various treatments (heavy metal ions, UV-B), methyl-jasmonate, abscisic acid, salicylic acid and hydrogen peroxide was examined, and the most notable effects appeared in the cells induced by UV-B light (which showed an 11-fold increase in camptothecin concentration) and by salicylic acid (which showed a 25-fold increase in 10-hydroxycamptothecin concentration). These results are significant in the context of the production of both pharmaceuticals.

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