Cheul Ho Lee

Rapid in vitro adventitious shoot propagation of Scopolia parviflora through rhizome cultures for enhanced production of tropane alkaloids

A rapid micropropagation system for Scopolia parviflora Nakai (Solanaceae), a rare medicinal plant native to Korea, was established using rhizome cultures. Shoots that originated from adventitious shoots of the rhizome were multiplied when the rhizomes were cultured on half-strength B5 liquid medium supplemented with various growth regulators. Optimum shoot multiplication was observed in half-strength B5 medium containing 3% (w/v) sucrose and 5.77xa0μM gibberellic acid (GA3). Each rhizome gave rise to an average of 12 shoots. Shoot elongation and root induction from multiple shoots occurred on growth regulator-free half-strength B5 solid medium. Healthy plantlets were transferred to a peat moss:vermiculite mixture for acclimatization, which was successful. The concentrations of tropane alkaloids, hyoscyamine and scopolamine were determined in different tissues of native growing plants, in vitro-propagated plants and acclimatized plants by high-performance liquid chromatography. The analysis revealed that the levels of hyoscyamine and scopolamine were higher in in vitro-propagated plants than in the native growing plants. When the rhizome was cut into segments and transferred to optimal culture conditions for multiple shoot propagation, only 12xa0weeks were required to produce a mature plant. We conclude that in vitro propagation techniques through rhizome cultures provide an efficient and rapid method for shoot propagation of S. parviflora.

High frequency plant regeneration and accumulation of tropane alkaloids in regenerated plants of Scopolia parviflora

An efficient in vitro plant regeneration system was established from callus culture of Scopolia parviflora. Callus was induced from adventitious roots on B5 medium with 0.45–9.04xa0μM 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D). In vitro plantlet regeneration was achieved on B5 medium supplemented with 44.38xa0μM benzyladenine (BA), 3% sucrose, and 0.38% gelrite. Plantlets were transplanted to artificial soil and grown to maturity successfully in a greenhouse. The tropane alkaloid contents in regenerated plants were analyzed using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), and were found to be higher than those of adventitious roots, native growing plants, and acclimated plants. Regenerated plants from organogenic callus cultures produced a greater amount of tropane alkaloids.

The Korean Baekdudaegan Mountains: A Glacial Refugium and a Biodiversity Hotspot That Needs to Be Conserved

This research was supported by Korea Research Foundation grants; KRF-2013R1A1A2063524 to MYC and NRF-2011-0017236, NRF-2013R1A1A3010892, and NRF-2017R1A2B4012215 to MGC and was carried out as part of the Infrastructure for the Conservation and Restoration of Rare and Endemic Plants in Korea National Arboretum that supported to MGC from 2015 to 2018.

Effect of Seed Collection Stage and Temperature on Germination of Deutzia paniculata Nakai, the Korea Native Species

In this study, we investigated the effect of seed collection stage and alternating temperature on the germination of Deutzia paniculata (Hydrangeaceae). The seeds were collected from naturally growing D. paniculata populations in Mt. Palgong, Gyeonsangbuk-do, Korea every two weeks over a three month period from August through October, 2014, totaling five collections. We examined seed characteristics such as seed size (length and width) and weight, and germination percentages for each collection stage under four different germination temperature regimes. We also examined germination after 30 and 60 days of cold moist stratification. Each collection phase had a different germination percentage and the lowest germination percentage was observed in the seeds from phase I (average GP of 15.7%). The germination percentage was similar at the later collection phases and in the higher temperatures suggesting that later collection times and higher temperatures are optimal for D. paniculata germination. We found that the optimum collection stage with high viability and germination percentage of for D. paniculata was during the middle of the September.