Stock Plant Material of St John’s Wort (Hypericum perforatum L.) Based on Biotechnology

Abstract

Biotechnology applied in the production of medicinal plant biomass will facilitate the multiplication and use of high-quality renewable medicinal materials without destroying natural resources. The study was aimed at the progeny plants of Hypericum perforatum L., Zolotodolinsky cultivar, morphological and anatomical evaluation to identify differences between conventional plant material and the one obtained through biotechnological methods, its biochemical analysis. The technique was developed for clonal micropropagation of Hypericum perforatum L., Zolotodolinsky cultivar. The paper presents a microscopic analysis of St. John’s wort material grown in tissue culture. The key microscopic signs that have diagnostic value are the structure and size of the epidermis, veins, and also 3 types of floral cups. Macro- and microdiagnostic signs were found to be identical in the intact and progeny plants. A phytochemical analysis suggested the presence of phenolic compounds in ethanol extracts (70%) from H. perforatum progeny plants. The content of extractives was established to make up 12.8±0.6%, a total of flavonoids – 5±1%, the amount of tannins – 6.40±0.01% per ADM of progeny plants. For the first time, Hypericum perforatum L. was established to have the content of xanthones 0.20±0.01% per ADM in terms of mangiferin.