Production of sanguinarine by elicited plant cell culture I. Shake flask suspension cultures
Abstract Various Papaver somniferum cell lines species were generated and examined for sanguinarine production either by elicitation with chitin or endogenous production. Initial elicitation experiments gave variable results, with sanguinarine yields and concentrations of up to 4.5% of the biomass dry weight and 202 mg l −1 , respectively, much higher than endogenous levels of production (~ 1 % or ~ 90 mg l −1 ). A closer examination of the growth and major nutrient (carbohydrates, phosphate, nitrate and ammonia) uptake patterns of these cultures revealed interesting insights into this process. Extracellular phosphate concentration near depletion (~ 0.1 mM) was found to be a reliable marker for elicitation and production. Elicited cultures showed an absolute requirement for extracellular carbohydrates and ammonia during the production phase for both survival and maximum production. Highest sanguinarine levels obtained were yield of 5.0%, concentration of 385 mg l −1 , and productivities of 82 and 26 mg l −1 d −1 for the production phase and whole culture duration, respectively.