Journal of Medicinal Plants Biotechnology

Abstract Plants synthesize a huge variety of secondary metabolites with complex chemical composition that not only have medicinal value but are also important to deal with biotic and abiotic stress conditions. The aim of current study was to investigate the impact of heat shock treatment on the production of secondary metabolites in callus obtained from of Echinacea purpurea plant. For this purpose, seeds were grown on MS medium. Then root explants were prepared from 45 days seedlings and transferred to MS medium containing 0/5 and 1 mg/L 2,4-D and Kin. Heat shock treatment at 35 °C for different time durations (10, 20, 30, 40, 50 and 60 min) was daily applied on 2 months old callus. After a week, the samples were collected and different biochemical analysis was performed. The results showed that the highest amount of total phenol, total flavonoid, soluble suger, MDA, chicoric acid, chlorogenic acid and caffeic acid was observed in samples that were treated for 60 min at 35 °C. On the other hand, the present data revealed that heat shock treatment caused a significant increase in catalase and peroxidase activity, but there was not any significant difference between different treatments. As a conclusion, heat shock treatment can be used as a new method to enhance secondary metabolites production in Echinacea in tissue culture contion.

Abstract Borage, generally known as Iranian Borage flower (scientific name Echium amoenum Fisch. & C.A. Mey.), is among the important, well-known, and widely used medicinal plants in human medicinal history and holds a special place in various cultures and folklores, particularly in Iran. This plant appears to rank after thyme in the list of the most consumed plants in Iran. Across the world, the flowers and leaves of E. amoenum are utilized for medicinal purposes, including the treatment of stress, cardiovascular diseases, cough, and lung disorders, as well as for their tonic and sedative properties. This plant is native to limited regions of northern and northwestern Iran and the Caucasus and it also grows in many parts of Europe, Western Asia, and North America, where it is often found growing wild along riverbanks. Iranian borage is considered one of the most valuable and popular medicinal plants in Iran. The Boraginaceae family comprises more than 130 genera and 2300 species. The Echium genus includes 67 species. According to global research, Iranian cowpea contains natural bioactive compounds with health-promoting effects, including antioxidant, antibacterial, antiviral, antidiabetic, anti-inflammatory, soothing, and immunoregulatory properties. In traditional medicine, the petals of this plant are used as a diuretic, pain reliever, diaphoretic, and blood pressure reducer. The principal constituents of this plant are polyphenols, rosmarinic acid, and flavonoids. This plant has seeds rich in alpha-linolenic and gammalinolenic essential fatty acids, which are among the fatty acids required for the formation of prostaglandins involved in the synthesis of the nerve myelin sheath. For this reason, it is used in the preparation of medicinal supplements to prevent neurological diseases such as MS. Genetic diversity, as well as the use of biotechnological methods such as cell culture and callus culture in this plant, is among the approaches for producing secondary metabolites that has been studied by numerous researchers and is discussed in this article. Most of the conducted research has been based on micro-proliferation. The nutritional medium used was Murashige and Skoog, and most of the hormones applied were 42-dichloroethoxyacetic acid, naphthalene acetic acid, and 6-benzylaminourea, or a combination of them.

Abstract Abstract
Plant tissue culture is recognized as a key tool in various research fields, especially in the area of medicinal plants. These techniques are employed for mass propagation, conservation, and production of secondary metabolites in medicinal plants. There are various methods for in-vitro culture, including micropropagation, axillary bud culture, organ culture, root and callus culture, organogenesis, somatic embryogenesis, and cell suspension culture. Since cell suspension culture and callus are typically preferred for producing plant chemicals, following root and shoot cultures as well as somatic embryogenesis, these methods play a significant role in optimizing the production of secondary metabolites. However, one of the major challenges in plant tissue culture is the potential occurrence of somaclonal variation, which can result from genetic mutations or changes in epigenetic markers. These variations particularly arise in highly differentiated explants and during the callus stage. Additionally, the occurrence of somaclonal variation may pose a barrier to successful in-vitro propagation and preservation of germplasm. This issue is especially critical in cases where maintaining the genetic and biochemical characteristics of medicinal plants is important. In the present study, the potential somaclonal variations resulting from the tissue culture of medicinal plants and their implications for the production of secondary metabolites are examined and discussed. This research can contribute to a better understanding of the challenges and opportunities associated with the use of tissue culture for the production of medicinal plants and valuable metabolites.

Abstract Artichoke medicinal plant (Cynara scolymus L.) is a herbaceous, diploid and perennial plant. This plant is native to the Mediterranean region and belongs to the Asteracea family. It is rich

in polyphenols, flavonoids, anthocyanins, phenolic compounds, inulin, coumarins, terpenes, dietary fibre, enzymes, polysaccharides, minerals and vitamins Several studies have shown that artichokes have properties such as antioxidant, anti-inflammatory,. Due to the antioxidant and hepatoprotective effects of this plant, which contains very little fat and high levels of minerals, vitamin C, fiber, inulin, polyphenols, hydroxycinnamates and flavones. But its most effective substance can be related to polyphenols, which are mainly composed of mono and dicaffeoylquinic acids and flavonoids. The first research related to tissue culture in this plant dates back to 1973. The first reports on the secondary metabolites of this plant were on synaropecarin, which was recorded and reported for the first time in 1960 by Suchy and his colleagues.Optimization of different physical conditions such as temperature, aeration, light stirring and chemical factors such as addition of growth regulators and precursors to culture media for in vitro production of these active compounds are described. Furthermore, cultures of transformed hairy roots, induced by Agrobacterium rhizogenes infection, have been discussed as an important technique to maximize the production of secondary metabolites in vitro. In this research, a general overview of the history and the time trend of biotechnology research has been made, and the problems, results, and research findings of the world's researchers have been collected.

Abstract Saffron (Crocus sativus L.) is one of the oldest medicinal and spice plants in the world. In order to investigate the effects of plant age on secondary metabolites and some physiological factors of saffron, a research project was conducted in a completely randomized design with three replications at the research field of medicinal plants of the University of Zanjan. Three saffron farms with different biological ages of one, two and five years old were selected as experimental treatments, and then three plots were randomly selected from each farm and the desired traits were measured. Results showed that, increasing of the age of saffron plants in this experiment increased fresh weight of plant and dry weight of stigma. 5-yraes old plants showed the highest amounts of these traits. Whereas, the contents of soluble proteins and sugars and photosynthetic pigments were higher at first year and decreased by increasing of plant age. Number of secondary metabolites decreased when the age of plants increased as in one–year old saffron plants 26 metabolites and in 5-year old plants only 15 metabolites were detected. Loliolid (18%) and thymol (17%) in 1-year old plants and thymol (19%) and camphor (14%) in 5-year old plants showed the highest level among all detected secondary compounds. Generally according to these results, plant age has an important effect on the number and kinds of secondary metabolites in saffron which should be considered at the time of saffron harvesting.

Abstract The increasing tendency of human societies to use herbal medicines has caused an increase in the demand for effective medicinal plants. Despite many advances in the field of artificial synthesis of effective plant substances, extraction from plant sources is still the only way to obtain many valuable medicinal substances. A group of alkaloids are natural drugs that are known as sedatives and painkillers; Like morphine and codeine, which are obtained from poppy, they are the most common painkillers. Currently, the country's annual need for morphine is 30 tons, which will increase with the increase in population. 70% of Iran's needs are supplied by importing concentrated poppy straw (CPS) and 30% from opium sap etc. About 5000 types of alkaloids are known in 15% of plants belonging to 150 plant families, among which tropane alkaloids such as hyoscyamine, atropine and scopolamine are widely used in medicine. One of the main uses of poppy alkaloids in the pharmaceutical industry is They are in painkillers. Today, the industrial production of tropane alkaloids through new techniques such as plant cell and tissue culture, somatic hybridization, metabolic engineering, large-scale cultivation and its commercialization using bioreactors has attracted a lot of attention. This article examines poppy alkaloids and their biosynthetic pathways, which can be useful in clarifying the future direction of research in this field.

Abstract Active substances or secondary metabolites in medicinal plants are regularly produced in response to biotic and abiotic stresses and determine the ability of plants to adapt during growth and development. In order to increase the quantity and quality of the effective substance of the green cumin medicinal plant, with the scientific name Cuminum cyminum L from the Chetrian family, we need to identify the germplasm and useful genes in domestic and wild populations of this plant. In the current research, five selected genes in the biosynthesis pathway of flavonoids in cumin, obtained from previous research based on NGS method, which had the highest expression changes in drought stress, were validated. DNA from young leaves of selected ecotypes was extracted and quality measured with agarose gel. Considering the PCR test and the observation of a single band in all cases and the lack of difference in the length of the amplified fragment among the selected ecotypes; The length polymorphism of the fragments resulting from the amplification was rejected due to the presence of deletion and addition regions between different genotypes. This experiment could not confirm the placement of the two studied ecotypes of Sadouq and Rafsanjan in terms of seed yield, essential oil and extract content, in two different groups in terms of the studied genes. Also, he could not confirm the difference in the expression of two genes (with sequence numbers DN1196 and DN32640) in drought stress and normal irrigation in the previous research