SSN 2410-7751 (Print)
ISSN 2410-776X (Online)
License CC-BY.

Biotechnologia Acta V. 19, No. 5 2026
P, 76-85, Bibliography 25, Engl.
UDC 615.322+582.923.5
doi:

Full text: (PDF, in English)

GROWTH CHARACTERISTICS AND INDOLE ALKALOID ACCUMULATION IN Rauvolfia serpentina TISSUE CULTURE CULTIVATED ON NUTRIENT
MEDIA OF DIFFERENT COMPOSITIONS

I. I. KONVALYUK¹ (https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2283-6063)
O. A. BIEDA ^{1, 2} (https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9381-8028)
L. P. MOZHYLEVSKA ¹ (https://orcid.org/ 0000-0002-9026-9921)
G. Yu. MYRYUTA ¹ (https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2474-4293)
S. M. YARMOLUK¹ (https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5898-6103)
V. A. KUNAKH ¹ (https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9418-3172)

¹ Institute of Molecular Biology and Genetics of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Kyiv
² Scientific Service Company “OTAVA” LLC”, Ukraine, Kyiv

Aim. To evaluate the productivity of the K-27M strain of R. serpentina and the content of indole alkaloids in biomass cultured on two nutrient media differing in mineral composition, sugar content, and growth regulator supplementation.

Methods. In vitro culture, high-performance liquid chromatography, and statistical methods.

Results. The strain was maintained on two media: the specially developed synthetic growth regulator-free 10C medium and the classical Murashige-Skoog (MS) medium, which contained vitamins and other organic compounds and was supplemented with 2 mg/L indole-3-acetic acid and 0.2 mg/L kinetin. Cultivation of the callus on 10C medium resulted in a fresh biomass yield of 596.2-677.4 g/L of medium per passage on day 60 of subculture. The corresponding dry biomass yield ranged from 43.4 to 53.5 g/L, with a dry matter content of 7.3–8.5%. In contrast, callus grown on the MS medium showed significantly lower values: fresh biomass yield decreased 1.8-fold, dry biomass yield 3.8-fold, and dry matter content 2.4-fold. The biomass of callus cultured on 10C medium contained 3.5% indole alkaloids, approximately twice the content observed in the MS-cultured strain. The 10C medium supported a higher accumulation of ajmaline (0.815–1.260%) and ajmalicine (0.017–0.025%) in the dry biomass. In the MS-cultured strain, the ajmaline content did not exceed 0.362%, while vomilenine accumulation was 1.9–2.7 times higher (0.728–0.840%) compared to the 10C medium. Reserpine content ranged from 0.006 to 0.019% on MS medium and from 0.007 to 0.011% on 10C, whereas yohimbine was detected at low levels (0.002–0.005%) on both media. Ajmaline productivity was substantially higher in cultures grown on the 10C medium (8.29.5 mg L⁻¹ day⁻¹) than in those grown on the MS medium (0.70.9 mg L⁻¹ day⁻¹), representing an approximately tenfold difference.

Conclusions. The specially developed synthetic growth-regulator-free nutrient medium 10C ensures high productivity in the K-27M strain of R. serpentina tissue culture and promotes greater alkaloid accumulation. Under these conditions, the dry biomass contains up to 3.5% indole alkaloids, including ajmaline (0.815–1.260%), ajmalicine (0.017–0.025%), vomilenine (0.273-0.434%), reserpine (0.007–0.011%), and yohimbine (0.002–0.005%). In contrast, cultivation on the classical MS medium supplemented with growth regulators results in 2–3-fold lower productivity and overall alkaloid accumulation, except for vomilenine, which accumulates at higher levels.

Keywords: plant tissue culture, Rauvolfia serpentina Benth. Ex Kurz, indole alkaloids, cellular biomass.

© Palladin Institute of Biochemistry of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, 2026