Abstract
Production of the steroidal saponin digitonin in multiplied shoots of Digitalis purpurea , (var. Excelsior Mixed) has been achieved in vitro by two experiments. In the experiment 1, shoot tips ( 1cm length ) explants from the sterilized seedlings were excised and cultured on MS medium ( Murashige and Skoog medium) supplemented with 0.5 mg/L TDZ (thidiazuron) and cholesterol at the concentrations 0.0, 0.1, 0.3, 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, 2.0 or 4.0 mg/L. After 45 day, results showed that the treatment with 0.5 mg/L TDZ and 2.0mg/L cholesterol had a positive effected on increasing the dry weight of multiplied shoots and their production of digitonin when compared with other treatments, where this treatment gave 2.98 g dry weight of multiplied shoots and digitonin at amount of 64.42 mg/g dry weight, while the other studied characteristics of multiplied shoots (content the total chlorophyll, soluble sugars and starch.) also this treatment had appositive effected and was gave the following values:- (3.51 mg/g fresh weight, 5.06% ,6.09% ) respectively. After that experiment 2 was carried out . The objective of this experiment was to increase the degree of digitonin production in multiplied shoots compared with the experiment 1.Therfore in the experiment 2, we were selected supplements the best treatment of experiment 1(0.5mg /L TDZ and 2.0mg/ L cholesterol ) and supplemented to the MS medium with the sugars glucose, fructose, sucrose or maltose at the concentrations 30,50,70 or 90 g/L for each sugar. After 45 days results showed that the treatment with 0.5 mg/L TDZ, 2.0 mg/L cholesterol and 50g/L maltose was the best a compared with other treatments, where this treatment gave 4.52 g dry weight of multiplied shoots and digitonin at amount of 191.87 mg/g dry weight . The content of multiplied shoots from the total chlorophyll, soluble sugars and starch also this treatment gave highest values and they are 4.97 mg/g fresh weight , 5.91% and 8.30% respectively .
 Key words: Digitalis purpurea, Cholesterol, Sugars, Digitonin .
Highlights
Digitalis purpurea ( Fam: Scrophularaceae ) is a biennial herb plant [1]
In the field of pharmacy and medicine, the steroidal saponin digitonin had a great importance because it was used to determine the ratio of cholesterol in the blood, plasma and bile acids but the great importance and interest of this compound and some steroidal saponins like the Diosgenin owing to their relation ship with some important substances as progesteron hormone, cortisone and vitamin D where the structures of these steroidal saponins have the same nucleus of these substances, these steroidal saponins can be used as a precursors for the production of these substances
It was difficult to distinguish the stem tips of these shoots it was not possible to count their number and arrange the statistical analysis for them.Total chlorophyll content, soluble sugars and starch of the shoot cultures was studied as an indicator to degree of the changes in quantity of digitonin in these shoots, where if the content of chlorophyll was high this mean the green plastids have high degree of differentiation and that reflected positively on the ability of green plastids to provide some necessary enzymes to produce these compounds [21, 22]
Summary
Digitalis purpurea ( Fam: Scrophularaceae ) is a biennial herb plant [1]. In the medicinal and pharmacy fields this plant has a great benefit because it contains the cardiac glycosides like" Digitoxin" and steroidal saponin glycosides like" Digitonin"both of these groups representing compounds of considerable importance to the pharmaceutical industry[2]. In the field of pharmacy and medicine, the steroidal saponin digitonin had a great importance because it was used to determine the ratio of cholesterol in the blood, plasma and bile acids but the great importance and interest of this compound and some steroidal saponins like the Diosgenin owing to their relation ship with some important substances as progesteron hormone, cortisone and vitamin D where the structures of these steroidal saponins have the same nucleus of these substances , these steroidal saponins can be used as a precursors for the production of these substances These substances were isolated from expensive and limit sources like adrenal cortex and bile acids of cattle(4 ,5) For this important many studies using modern technology like tissue culture technique ( in vitro) to increasing the production of steroidal saponins in some plants. Where via the usage of this technology different explants could be cultured and inducted to different stage of growths as a source for these important medical compounds and in a high concentrations without being restricted to the environmental conditions as well as cleans of the pharmaco which could be obtained (6 ). the objective of our study using this technique to inducted the multiplication shoots of Digitalis purpurea (var exlecior mixed) and increasing their production from the digitonin compound
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
