EFFECT OF ETHEPHON AND ANCYMIDOL ON THE PRODUCTION OF HYPERICINS IN SHOOT CULTURES OF HYPERICUM PERFORATUM

摘要

St. John's wort or Hypericum perforatum L. (family: Hypericacae) is one of the leading herbal drug used for the treatment of mild to moderate depression and the high demand for the medicinal constituents like hypericins have necessitated a search for an alternative, biotechnological method for their production. Ethephon and ancymidol are growth retardants which influence plant secondary metabolism. Hypericum perforatum (St. John's wort) is familiar for its active secondary metabolites especially hypericins. In vitro grown shoot cultures were treated with ethephon and ancymidol at mid exponential growth phase. Ethephon (50mcm) enhanced the production of pseudohypericin (155.81 mg/L) by 1.4 fold without affecting the shoot growth. Ancymidol reduced the weight of biomass (fresh weight) by 15% than the control cultures. The growth associated production of hypericins in shoot cultures can be enhanced by an optimized concentration of ethephon.