Abstract

A STUDY ON THE INFLUENCE OF PLANT GROWTH REGULATOR ON SHOOT MULTIPLICATION AND EVALUATION OF MAJOR WITHANOLIDES IN WITHANIA somnifera

Parameswari M., Estri Laras A., Joni K., Valizadeh, M. and Kalaiselvi S.*

ABSTRACT

W. somnifera is one of the top range medicinal herb with a rich repository of pharmaceutically active steroidal lactones known as withanolides. In the present study, adventitious shoot multiplication protocol of W. somnifera was optimized in media supplemented with different concentration of cytokinin (BAP and Kin). The maximum number of shoots (10.2±0.86) was observed in MS basal medium supplemented with BAP (4.44μM), 3% sucrose and 0.8% agar and the same was found to be most suitable medium for in vitro adventitious shoot multiplication (28 ± 0.89) in suspension. An increase in shoot mass of 38.6g/L and presence of bioactive compound withanolide A (129.18±0.33) and withaferin A (968.6±0.45) was observed in in vitro shoot that was analyzed using HPTLC. In vitro adventitious shoots in bioreactors could be used as a quick and efficient process of generating multiples that would offer unique opportunities for producing shoot based pharmaceutical products without having to depend on field cultivation.

Keywords: Withania somnifera, adventitious shoots, BAP, Kin, withanolides, HPTLC.