Effects of combined hormonal deprivation and fungal elicitation on the production of coumarins in cell suspension cultures of Angelica archangelica L.

The effectiveness of elicitation as a tool to enhance the production of secondary metabolites in plant tissue cultures depends on a complex interaction between the elicitor and the plant cell. The paper investigated the influence of removal of plant growth regulators and light conditions on the cell growth and elicitation of coumarins in Angelica archangelica cell suspension cultures. An autoclaved homogenate of Pythium aphanidermatum was used as the elicitor. Cell cultures of Angelica archangelica were cultured in a medium supplemented with 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid and benzylaminopurine or in a hormone free medium, and in the dark or under continuous light. The culture growth (both fresh and dry biomass) was not affected adversely in the presence of the fungal elicitor as compared with the control cultures. The contents of coumarins in cells were influenced slightly. The content of coumarins in the medium was stimulated by hormonal deprivation and elicitation depending on the light conditions; the best results were achieved in the dark-growing angelica cell suspension cultures cultured in the hormone free medium. Removal of growth regulators from the culture medium brought about 5-fold increase in coumarins, and by combining hormonal deprivation and fungal elicitation, a 15-fold enhancement of coumarins was achieved, in comparison with control cultures cultured in the presence of plant growth regulators and without elicitor treatment.

Keywords: Angelica archangelica L.; cell suspension cultures; growth; coumarins; growth regulators; light; elicitation; Pythium; flow injection analysis

Grants and funding:

This work was supported by grant No MSM 0021620822 of the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports of the Czech Republic.