Medicinal Crops Research Articles

Tartary buckwheat database (TBD): an integrative platform for gene analysis of and biological information on Tartary buckwheat.

Rice, wheat, corn, and potatoes are four crops that provide a daily source of nutrition for humans, but there are many problems that have been found with these crops. First, they lack amino acids and minerals which are necessary for balanced nutrition, and they also are grown very widely and as monocultures, which increases the risk of the human food system being destroyed by climate change. Thus, by introducing coarse cereals with good characteristics, we can enrich human food resources, realize agricultural diversification, improve dietary structure, and mitigate risks. Tartary buckwheat (Fagopyrum tataricum) is a widely cultivated edible and medicinal crop with unique nutritional and excellent economic value. It contains flavonoids, such as rutin and quercetin, which are not found in cereal crops. Rutin is a major flavonoid that can enhance blood flow and aid in the use of vitamin C and the production of collagen. In addition, such antioxidants have been shown to effectively reduce cholesterol levels, blood clots, and hypertension, particularly for the prevention of inflammatory liver injury (Middleton et al., 2000; Lee et al., 2013; Suzuki et al., 2014; Huang et al., 2016; Nishimura et al., 2016). Meanwhile, Tartary buckwheat can tolerate poor climate and acidic soils containing high amounts of aluminum, which is toxic to other crops (Wang et al., 2015). The self-pollination of Tartary buckwheat has resulted in a decrease in genomic heterozygosity, which is valuable for breeding and a stable production trait (Wang and Campbell, 2007). Therefore, Tartary buckwheat is an important minor crop, which is expected to become the target of many breeding efforts in the future.

Interaction of water activity and temperature on growth, gene expression, and aflatoxin B1 production in Aspergillus flavus on Indian senna (Cassia angustifolia Vahl.)

Senna (Cassia angustifolia Vahl.) is a medicinal crop with laxative properties, and it has significant demand in the global pharmaceutical market. Senna pods are highly susceptible to aflatoxin contamination, and the successful export of pods is hindered due to the regulatory limits of importing countries. The senna pod water activity (aw) from harvest to storage is the key factor determining AFB1 accumulation. The temperature conditions from field to warehouse also interact with pod aw, which influences fungal growth and AFB1 production. The determination of an ideal combination of aw and temperature led to the assessment of the critical control point for AFB1 synthesis in senna. Hence, this study aimed to evaluate the influence of aw (0.99, 0.96, 0.93, 0.90, and 0.87 aw) and temperature (20, 28, and 37 °C) on fungal growth, gene expression (aflR and aflS), and AFB1 production by A. flavus in senna agar medium. The fungus showed the longest lag time (7.7 days) at 20 °C with 0.87 aw. We observed that 0.96 aw (P < 0.01) was optimum for the diametric growth rate at 28 and 37 °C. However, the peak expression of regulatory genes (aflR and aflS) and the maximum AFB1 production were observed only at 28 °C (0.96 aw). The highest growth rate occurred at 37 °C, which did not favor the expression of genes and AFB1 production. However, at 28 °C, it positively correlated with gene expression and AFB1 production. The suppressed expression of regulatory genes and a trace amount of aflatoxin B1 were found at 20 °C with all the tested aw. In our experiments, the low aw (0.87 and 0.90 aw) suppressed the fungal growth, gene expression, and AFB1 production of A. flavus at all of the tested temperatures (20, 28, and 37 °C). The rapid drying of senna pods with a low water activity (≤0.87 aw) and storage at low temperature (20 °C) are ideal conditions to avoid AFB1 and ensure the quality of produce for export.

Development and optimization of novel processing methods of fruit extracts of medicinal crop Cornus officinalis

Developing novel processing approaches is an effective way to improve the industrial utilization and production of crops. Dogwood (Cornus officinalis Sizb. et Zucc.) is an industrial crop in the Cornaceae family, which has been used as a traditional Chinese medicine with good medicinal values. Nevertheless, little is reported on the processing technology of C. officinalis products. In this study, we conducted a comprehensive study on the development and optimization of novel processing methods of C. officinalis fruits. The processing approach of fermentation was first used to obtain fruit extracts of C. officinalis. The fresh fruits and dried fruits were used as raw materials of fermentation. Three different parameters including sugar content, SO2 addition and yeast inoculation were chosen as variables to determine the best fermentation condition using response surface methodology (RSM). The contents of total organic acids, total iridoid glycosides, and seven medicinal active ingredients were estimated to reveal the accumulation change of bioactive products during processing. The results showed that the main-fermentation time of fresh fruits is 12–16 days, and the after-fermentation time is 30–35 days, while the main-fermentation time of dried fruits is 16–20 days, and the after-fermentation time is 30–35 days. Compared with dry-fruit extracts, fresh-fruit extracts have better quality with higher contents of medicinal active ingredients. Collectively, these results provide valuable references for the processing of C. officinalis products. Moreover, the novel processing approaches of fermentation proposed in this study will shed light on further development of other medicinal crops.

تأثیر کودهای آلی، شیمیایی و زیستی بر عملکرد و کارایی مصرف نیتروژن و فسفر در خرفه (Portulaca oleracea L.)

AbstractBackground and Objectives: Purslane (Portulaca oleracea L.) is an annual and C4 plant that belongs to the family of Portulacaceae. The plant is drought- and salt-tolerant which contains high amounts of beneficial omega-3 fatty acids and antioxidant vitamins. Nitrogen is the key element in soil fertility and crop production. Attention to the soil quality and health has increased in recent years, especially for sustainable production of medicinal crops. So that, for production of healthy food in industrialized countries, using natural and on-farm inputs has been considered. One of the practical ways to achieve this goal is organic and biofertilizers. Given the importance of Purslane as a medicinal plant and due to the fact that there is not detailed information about the nitrogen requirement for this plant, this study was conducted to effect of organic, biological and chemical fertilizers on yield, N and P use efficiency Purslane (Portulaca oleracea L.) in Birjand, Iran Materials and Methods: In order to investigate the effect of organic, biological and chemical fertilizers on the yield and yield components of purslane seed, an experiment was conducted in a factorial randomized complete block design with three replications in Birjand University Research Farm in crop years 2015-2016 and 2017- 2018. Experimental treatments were based on a combination of four sources of nitrogen supply: cow manure, vermicompost, fertilizer (NPK) and control (without any fertilizer application), and four types of biofertilizer including: nitroxin (including azotobacter and azospirillum), mycorrhiza (Glomus intraradices), Biosulfur (including thiobacillus with sulfur) and control (without any fertilizer). The traits studied in this experiment included: biomass yield, grain yield, nitrogen and phosphorus biomass percentage, nitrogen and phosphorus biomass content, nitrogen and phosphorus uptake efficiency, seed based nitrogen and phosphorus uptake efficiency, agronomic efficiency of nitrogen and phosphorus based They were. Results: The results showed that the effect of nitrogen sources on all studied traits (except physiological grain nitrogen efficiency) was significant. The highest grain yield (1959.99 kg.ha-1) and biomass yield (9782.43 kg.ha-1) were obtained from NPK treatment with no significant difference with cow manure. Also, the most nitrogen efficiency indices were obtained from NPK treatment. However, no significant difference was observed between agronomic efficiency of grain and cow manure. The highest phosphorus content and biomass phosphorus content were obtained from NPK treatment. However, with the use of organic and chemical fertilizers, the efficiency of phosphorus use decreased. The effect of biofertilizers on most of the studied traits (except biomass P percent) was not significant. Interaction of nitrogen sources and biofertilizers was significant on most of the studied traits (except grain yield, agronomic efficiency of N and P). Conclusions: Based on the results of this experiment, considering the environmental effects and increasing the efficiency of nitrogen use for sustainable production of purslane seed in Birjand region can be used as fertilizer replacement (NPK).

Genome-wide identification, phylogeny and expression analysis of AP2/ERF transcription factors family in sweet potato

BackgroundIn recent years, much attention has been given to AP2/ERF transcription factors because they play indispensable roles in many biological processes, such as plant development and biotic and abiotic stress responses. Although AP2/ERFs have been thoroughly characterised in many plant species, the knowledge about this family in the sweet potato, which is a vital edible and medicinal crop, is still limited. In this study, a comprehensive genome-wide investigation was conducted to characterise the AP2/ERF gene family in the sweet potato.ResultsHere, 198 IbAP2/ERF transcription factors were obtained. Phylogenetic analysis classified the members of the IbAP2/ERF family into three groups, namely, ERF (172 members), AP2 (21 members) and RAV (5 members), which was consistent with the analysis of gene structure and conserved protein domains. The evolutionary characteristics of these IbAP2/ERF genes were systematically investigated by analysing chromosome location, conserved protein motifs and gene duplication events, indicating that the expansion of the IbAP2/ERF gene family may have been caused by tandem duplication. Furthermore, the analysis of cis-acting elements in IbAP2/ERF gene promoters implied that these genes may play crucial roles in plant growth, development and stress responses. Additionally, the available RNA-seq data and quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) were used to investigate the expression patterns of IbAP2/ERF genes during sweet potato root development as well as under multiple forms of abiotic stress, and we identified several developmental stage-specific and stress-responsive IbAP2/ERF genes. Furthermore, g59127 was differentially expressed under various stress conditions and was identified as a nuclear protein, which was in line with predicted subcellular localization results.ConclusionsThis study originally revealed the characteristics of the IbAP2/ERF superfamily and provides valuable resources for further evolutionary and functional investigations of IbAP2/ERF genes in the sweet potato.

Prospects of foliar treatments with glycine solution to increase the productivity of dill

Relevance. Dill is a popular food and medicinal crop (Anethum graveolens L.) of the Celery family (Apiaceae). Seeds of dill are included in the 14th edition of the State Pharmacopoeia of the Russian Federation. However, this crop is characterized by a relatively low yield, which reduces the efficiency of its production. The use of environmentally friendly growth-regulating compounds can significantly increase the yield and improve its quality. As a growth-regulating, foliar treatment with a solution of the amino acid glycine was tested. The amino acid glycine is environmentally friendly and does not pose a danger to humans and animals. The aim of the work was to increase the productivity of garden dill using foliar treatments with glycine amino acid.Materials and methods. Dill varieties Gribovsky and Symphony were chosen as objects to study the effect of the foliar treatments with glycine. Sowing of seeds was carried out at an early date, which for the conditions of the Lipetsk region corresponds to the first decade of April, with a SZT-3.6 seeder with 15 cm row spacing. The seeding rate was 15 kg/ha, the seeding depth was 1-2 cm. were Treatment with glycine solution was achieved in plants rosette phase. The concentration of glycine was 25, 50 and 100 mg / l. The control plants were sprayed with distilled water. The crop was cut during the period of brown seeds on the central umbrella. The content of essential oil was determined by the 14th edition of the State Pharmacopoeia of the Russian Federation (method 1). The content of the main components was determined by gas chromatography.Results. As a result of the research, a positive effect of foliar treatments with glycine on both yield and the content of essential oil in the raw material of dill varieties Gribovsky and Symphony was revealed. As a result of treatments, regardless of concentration, the seeds yield and the yield of essential oil per unit area increased. The increase in the mass of 1000 pieces of fruits was not unambiguous. Based on the results obtained, the effective concentration of amino acid glycine is determined not only by the characteristics of the variety, but also by weather conditions, when, depending on the conditions during the processing period and prior to harvesting, different aspects of the drug's action appear. According to the results of observations for 2 years and an assessment by the sum of the indicators, the optimal concentration of glycine in most cases was 100 mg / l, at the same time, for the Symphony variety for two years, two-foliar treatment with low concentrations of glycine (10 mg / l rosette + 10 mg / l budding).

Introduction study of Gynostemma pentaphyllum (Thunb.) Makino in the conditions of the Western Caucasus

Relevance. Due to the fact that gynostemma is an endemic plant, providing the pharmaceutical industry with domestic raw materials is not possible, this problem can be solved only through the introduction of this species into the culture.Material and methods. Studies on the introduction of Gynostemma pentaphyllum (Thunb.) Makino in the experimental fields of medicinal crop rotation of the North Caucasus branch of FGBNU VILAR, located in the zone of Western Ciscaucasia, were carried out to study the biomorphological and environmental features of growth and development of the plant, the most optimal conditions for growing and determination of economically valuable indicators. Propagation was carried out through seedlings from seeds received under the contract from South Korea, which were planted in the open ground in early May in areas with direct sunlight and under the canopy of trees (shade). Gynostemma pentaphyllum is a climbing liana with a creeping stem, so it was grown as a trellised crop.Results. It has been established that gynostemma under Krasnodar Territory conditions passes all stages of phenological development, starting from the first year of vegetation, grows and bears fruit every year. The duration of the growing season from 229 to 238 days was determined. Harvesting was carried out in the phase of budding – beginning of flowering. The most optimal condition for growing this crop is shading compared to the option of direct sunlight, where there was a significant increase in growth and development of gynostemma, which contributed to a significant increase in yield. On the rhizome of gynostemma II and III years of vegetation new additional shoots are formed, the number of which is significantly higher in the variant with shading. The conducted introduction studies indicate the possibility of cultivation of Gynostemma pentaphyllum (Thunb.) Makino in the zone of the Western Caucasus.

Radio-frequency (RF) room temperature plasma treatment of sweet basil seeds (Ocimum basilicum L.) for germination potential enhancement by immaculation

Ocimum basilicum L. is an antiviral and immunity boosting medicinal plant and culinary herb. Potential use of sweet basils in COVID 19 prevention and management is making its demand rise. This study is aimed at germination potential enhancement of sweet basil seeds. Reported study is evidenced with scientific data of radio-frequency cold plasma treatment using Ar + O2 feed gas. O. basilicum seeds, placed inside the rotating glass bottle, were directly exposed to RF (13.56 MHz) plasma produced in Ar + O2 feed gas. Seed treatment was done using RF source power (60 W, 150 W, 240 W), process pressure (0.2 mbar, 0.4 mbar, 0.6 mbar), and treatment time (5 min, 10 min, 15 min) at different combinations. Results show that, the most efficient treatment provide up to ∼89 % of the germination percentage which is an enhancement by 32.3 % from the control. SEM images revealed slight shrinkage in the seed size with eroded appearance over the seed. Enhancement of lipid peroxidation, show that oxidation of seed coat may propagate internally. Water imbibition analysis, of the treated seeds, was carried out for 2−12 hours. Further analysis of seed weight, on every one hour, after soaking shows enhanced water absorption capability except the treatment at 240 W, 0.6 mbar and 15 min. Plasma treatment enhanced carbohydrate content and protein content which is reported to be due to increased primary metabolism. Whereas, increased activity of secondary metabolism results in the enhancement of enzymatic (catalase) and non-enzymatic antioxidants (proline). Vital growth parameters, such as SVI I and SVI II, got amplified by 37 % and 133 % respectively after treatment. Ameliorative effects of plasma treatment are found highly significant with a positive and significant correlation value (p < 0.01) between germination percentages, SVI I, SVI II, carbohydrate, protein and proline show their interrelationship. Ar + O2 plasma treatment is found to bring forth significant changes in the O. basilicum seeds which eventually enhanced the germination potential and it could be a very promising technology for the medicinal crop.

High-quality genome assembly of an important biodiesel plant, Euphorbia lathyris L

Caper spurge, Euphorbia lathyris L., is an important energy crop and medicinal crop. Here, we generated a high-quality, chromosome-level genome assembly of caper spurge using Oxford Nanopore sequencing, Illumina sequencing, and Hi-C technology. The final genome assembly was ∼988.9 Mb in size, 99.8% of which could be grouped into 10 pseudochromosomes, with contig and scaffold N50 values of 32.6 and 95.7 Mb, respectively. A total of 651.4 Mb repetitive sequences and 36,342 protein-coding genes were predicted in the genome assembly. Comparative genomic analysis showed that caper spurge and castor bean clustered together. We found that no independent whole-genome duplication event had occurred in caper spurge after its split from the castor bean, and recent substantial amplification of long terminal repeat retrotransposons has contributed significantly to its genome expansion. Furthermore, based on gene homology searching, we identified a number of candidate genes involved in the biosynthesis of fatty acids and triacylglycerols. The reference genome presented here will be highly useful for the further study of the genetics, genomics, and breeding of this high-value crop, as well as for evolutionary studies of spurge family and angiosperms.

Agroecological Aspects of Black Pepper (Piper nigrum L.) Cultivation in Kerala: A Review

Black pepper is a very important spice and medicinal crop of India. The country produces about 62,000 metric tonnes of black pepper annually, of which 10–12% is exported. Kerala with an area of 82,761 ha under the crop is a leading producer of the spice in India. It is grown under varied agro-ecologies in the state ranging from sea-level to High Ranges. The crop, a climber, is cultivated either as a monocrop trailed on different multipurpose support trees (called “standards”, e.g. Ailanthus triphysa, Erythrina indica, Garuga pinnata, Gliricidia sepium etc.) or in the homesteads along with assorted trees like Areca catechu, Cocos nucifera, Artocarpus heterophyllus, Mangifera indica and the like. Trailing a sciophytic (shade-loving) climber on woody perennial support trees makes it a unique agronomic system and an excellent example of agroforestry. Attractive prices, albeit fluctuations, long shelf-life of the produce, and the ability to provide a range of ecosystem services including supporting and regulatory services (e.g. carbon sequestration and soil fertility enrichment), make black pepper production an attractive land use option in Kerala. This paper reviews the literature on agroecology of the crop with particular reference to Kerala.

Scale-up production of Rehmannia glutinosa adventitious root biomass in bioreactors and improvement of its acteoside content by elicitation

Rehmannia glutinosa is an important medicinal crop that has been widely used globally to treat various ailments such as hematinic deficiencies, diabetes, and adrenal disorders. To provide a sustainable supply to meet large demands, alternative cultivation methods, apart from conventional ones, are indispensable. This study developed an optimized condition for R. glutinosa adventitious root culture and a scale-up production system using a bioreactor. A woody plant medium enriched with vitamins, 30 g/L sucrose, and 2.0 mg/L 1-naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA) supported the optimum growth rate of adventitious roots (growth index of 25.67). The application of methyl jasmonate (MeJa) at a concentration of 200 μM showed the best enhancement of acteoside biosynthesis, with an approximately 2.53-fold increase (14.37 mg/g dry weight [DW]) compared with the control (5.67 mg/g DW). However, all treatments with MeJa and salicylic acid reduced the biomass of R. glutinosa adventitious roots compared with control. To validate the optimized protocol, the culture system was scaled up by comparing shake flask cultures with 2- and 20-L balloon type (air lift) bubble bioreactors (BTBB) along with elicitation using 200 μM MeJa. The 20-L BTBB cultures produced good-quality R. glutinosa roots with higher biomass (15.94 g DW), acteoside content (22.13 mg/g DW), and antioxidant activity (84.22 %) than shake flask cultures. In addition, fourier transform near-IR (FT-NIR) analysis showed no significant difference in the chemical composition of the in vitro adventitious roots and those that were commercially available. Thus, these findings will provide a basis for the development of large-scale R. glutinosa adventitious root production to meet the demands of pharmaceutical and oriental medicine industries without affecting its availability in nature.

Features of development and reproduction of representatives of the Solanaceae family in the conditions of the Southern coast of the Crimea

Relevance. Taking into account the narrow range of vegetable plant species grown in Russia and the global trend of impoverishment of their biochemical composition, simultaneously with the globalization of crop production, it is necessary to search for plant species and forms that are characterized by a high content of functional food ingredients (FFI) in their composition, since a decrease in the consumption of important micro-and macroelements sharply increases the risk of dangerous diseases for humans.Objective. To study the features of growth and development of plants of the Solanaceae family in the collection of the Federal State Funded Institution of Science "NBG-NSC", characterized by a high content of biologically active substances and functional food ingredients (FFI), a short growing season and a neutral reaction to the length of the day.Materials and methods. Features of development, biomorphological indicators of plants were studied according to the method of introduction studies developed in the Nikitsky Botanical Gardens [4]. The antioxidant activity (AOA) was determined by the method [5] based on the redox reaction of substances of antioxidant action with potassium permanganate. The content of water-soluble minerals was determined using a TDS 3 conductometer on aqueous plant extracts. The content of phenolic compounds was determined by photometric method using the Folin-Chocalteu reagent [6]; ascorbic acid content - by iodometric titration [7], carotenoids content - by spectrophotometric method [8].Results. The revealed features of growth and development, biochemical composition of a new vegetable crop for the Russian Federation – nightshade caripense (tzimbalo) (Solanum caripense Dunal.), bladder herb (Physalis alkekengi L.), medicinal crops - nightshade laciniate (Solanum laciniatum Ait.), vitania hypnotic (synonyms winter cherry, Indian ginseng or physalis sunny-leaved) (Withania somnifera (L.) Dunal.), great morel (Atropa belladonna L.).Conclusions. The conducted research will allow expanding and replenishing the range of new crops with an increased content of biologically active substances and antioxidants.

Increasing the resistance of the drug calendula to abiotic environmental factors

Currently, medicinal plant growing is one of the promising areas of activity of agricultural enterprises in the Russian Federation. This area has a high economic potential. The deterioration of the general ecological situation, the instability of weather conditions have a negative impact on the growth and development of medicinal crops, leading to a decrease in plant resistance to stress factors and the inability to fully realize their potential with cultivated varieties. Plant growth regulators are one of the most promising groups of pesticides, the advantages of which are that they are harmless, environmentally friendly and highly effective at low consumption rates of biologically active substances of polyfunctional action. Exogenous use of growth regulators makes it possible to activate physiological and biochemical processes, regulate individual stages of morphogenesis, in order to mobilize the potential of the plant organism, aimed at overcoming unfavorable environmental conditions by plants, increasing their resistance to harmful organisms and ensuring optimal productivity. On the territory of the collection nursery of the Middle Volga branch of the FSBI VILAR in 2018-2020, an experiment was carried out in order to study the effect of growth regulators and micronutrient fertilizers Zircon, Epin-extra, Ferovit and Siliplant, on the resistance of plants to unfavorable growing conditions, increasing the yield of inflorescences and seeds of calendula officinalis. Ferovit turned out to be the best result of application in the raw material areas for three years of research in the prevailing weather conditions. The average yield of raw materials of air-dried inflorescences was 2.10 t / ha, which is 0.45 t / ha more than the control variant. On seed plots, the best indicators were obtained with the use of Siliplant micronutrient fertilizer 1.25 t / ha, which is 0.2 t / ha more than the option without the use of drugs.

Effects of water and nitrogen coupling on the photosynthetic characteristics, yield, and quality of Isatis indigotica

Isatis indigotica is a commercial medicinal crop that is widely cultivated with high water and nutrient application, in the arid areas of northwest China. Rational irrigation and nitrogen application are key factors for successful crop management. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of water and nitrogen coupling on the photosynthetic characteristics, yield, and quality of Isatis indigotica produced in northwestern China. Field trials were conducted for 2 consecutive years at an irrigation test station. Data on photosynthetic parameters, yield, and quality were collected from individual Isatis indigotica for each treatment during 2018–2019. The application of nitrogen significantly increased photosynthetic rates and yield under the same irrigation conditions. However, the yields were reduced in the excess water treatments (W3N1 and W3N2) and in the excess nitrogen treatments (W1N3, W2N3, and W3N3) in contrast to the optimum W2N2 treatment. Moreover, the quality indicators of the W2N2 treatment decreased compared with CK, which was due to water stress and more photoassimilates being available to the roots, but the effective quality index value could be effectively improved by greatly increasing the yield.

The Genetic Diversity and Population Structure of Different Geographical Populations of Bottle Gourd (Lagenaria siceraria) Accessions Based on Genotyping-by-Sequencing

Lagenaria siceraria (Molina) Standl is an important horticultural and medicinal crop grown worldwide in the food and pharmaceutical industries. The crop exhibits extensive phenotypic and genetic variation useful for cultivar development targeting economic traits; however, limited genomic resources are available for effective germplasm characterization into breeding and conservation strategies. This study determined the genetic relationships and population structure in a collection of different accessions of bottle gourd derived from Chile, Asia, and South Africa by using single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers and mining of simple sequence repeat (SSR) loci derived from genotyping-by-sequencing (GBS) data. The GBS resulted in 12,766 SNPs classified as moderate to highly informative, with a mean polymorphic information content of 0.29. The mean gene diversity of 0.16 indicated a low genetic differentiation of the accessions. Analysis of molecular variance revealed less differentiation between (36%) as compared to within (48%) bottle gourd accessions, suggesting that a random mating system dominates inbreeding. Population structure revealed two genetically differentiated groups comprising South African accessions and an admixed group with accessions of Asian and Chilean origin. The results of SSR loci mining from GBS data should be developed and validated before being used in diverse bottle gourd accessions. The SNPs markers developed in the present study are useful genomic resources in bottle gourd breeding programs for assessing the extent of genetic diversity for effective parental selection and breeding.

SSR markers development and their application in genetic diversity evaluation of garlic (Allium sativum) germplasm

Garlic (Allium sativum), an asexually propagated vegetable and medicinal crop, has abundant genetic variation. Genetic diversity evaluation based on molecular markers has apparent advantages since their genomic abundance, environment insensitivity, and non-tissue specific features. However, the limited number of available DNA markers, especially SSR markers, are insufficient to conduct related genetic diversity assessment studies in garlic. In this study, 4372 EST-SSR markers were newly developed, and 12 polymorphic markers together with other 17 garlic SSR markers were used to assess the genetic diversity and population structure of 127 garlic accessions. The averaged polymorphism information content (PIC) of these 29 SSR markers was 0.36, ranging from 0.22 to 0.49. Seventy-nine polymorphic loci were detected among these accessions, with an average of 3.48 polymorphic loci per SSR. Both the clustering analyses based on either the genotype data of SSR markers or the phenotypic data of morphological traits obtained genetic distance divided the 127 garlic accessions into three clusters. Moreover, the Mantel test showed that genetic distance had no significant correlations with geographic distance, and weak correlations were found between genetic distance and the phenotypic traits. AMOVA analysis showed that the main genetic variation of this garlic germplasm collection existed in the within-population or cluster. Results of this study will be of great value for the genetic/breeding studies in garlic and enhance the utilization of these garlic germplasms.

Tetraploidization Increases the Contents of Functional Metabolites in Cnidium officinale

Cnidium officinale is an important medicinal crop grown in Asia for its pharmacological properties. In this study, tetraploid breeding was conducted to increases the content of medicinal compound and tolerance to the environmental conditions using in vitro shoot culture of C. officinale. For this, we generated tetraploid C. officinale plants using oryzalin, a chromosome doubling agent, and compared the morphological traits, cytological characteristics, and heat stress-responsive gene expression levels between tetraploid and diploid genotypes. Chromosome doubling efficiency was the highest in plantlets treated with 4.0 mg∙L−1 oryzalin for 2 days. Compared with diploids, the plant height of tetraploids was reduced, while the petiole diameter was increased by approximately 39%. The dry matter of tetraploid leaves was significantly higher than that of diploid leaves. Compared with diploids, tetraploids showed higher chloroplast number and stomatal complex size but lower chlorophyll and carotenoid contents. The phenolic content of tetraploid plantlets was significantly higher than that of diploid plantlets. Contents of naringin as well as salicylic acid and gentisic acid, which are strong antioxidant compounds, were dramatically increased upon tetraploidization. Interestingly, liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry (LC–MS) analyses revealed increased levels of senkyunolide F and phthalide in tetraploid roots but not in tetraploid or diploid leaves.

Phenolics of Aerial Parts of Gentiana lutea L. and Their Biological Activity

Gentiana lutea L. is a medicinal plant the roots of which are primarily used in treatments of various human digestive disorders, but also the production of alcoholic liquors. The roots (radix) of G. lutea are described in the European Pharmacopeia, but knowledge about the chemical composition and biological activities of its aerial parts is still limited. Thus, until today aerial parts of this species have not been used in medical treatments or consumed. Therefore, flowers, leaves, and stems extracts of G. lutea obtained by using four different extraction solvents (petrol ether, chloroform, ethanol, and water) were examined for their chemical composition and biological activities. High concentrations of salicylic acid, apigenin, and naringenin were recorded for ethanol stem extracts, while significant amounts of kaempferol were detected in leaves and flowers in chloroform and water extracts, respectively. The highest antioxidant potential was recorded for flower and stem petrol ether extracts with the lowest IC50 values, ranging from 94.46 ± 9.45 to 105.38 ± 10.54 μg/mL. Ethanol extracts of flowers and stems showed moderate antioxidant activity (IC50 143.15 ± 14.32 and 146.90 ± 14.69 μg/mL) as well as strong antimicrobial activity against Candida albicans (21.00 ± 1.00 and 27.50 ± 1.78 mm inhibition zones, respectively). In addition, ethanol extracts had higher antimycotic activity compared to naturally occurring phenolic compounds that are used as positive controls. Moreover, statistical analysis of the activities of plant extracts and single compounds showed that levels of chlorogenic and caffeic acids strongly correlate with the biological activities of the extracts, i.e., they are the main carriers of these biological activities. The presented results indicate the possible use of aerial parts of G. lutea as a natural preservative, as well as a antimicrobial agent, which significantly amplifies the benefits of this medicinal crop and greatly affects the sustainability of cultivated Gentiana plantation.

Geographical variations in fatty acid and steroid saponin biosynthesis in Dioscorea zingiberensis rhizomes

Dioscorea zingiberensis is an important source of diosgenin. However, the low environmental adaptability of plants producing bioactive components impedes their industrial development. In this study, D. zingiberensis rhizomes were collected from 20 populations covering a wide geographical area from northwestern to southwestern China. Variations in metabolites of steroid saponins biosynthesis pathway (steroid saponins, diosgenin and phytosterols) and fatty acids were determined. Spearman analysis showed that fatty acids were strongly correlated with steroid saponins. Furthermore, the specialized metabolites showed regional variations across a large geographical scale. Redundancy analysis illustrated that environmental variables had a profound impact on specialized metabolites. Among all environmental variables evaluated, latitude was the factor that contributed the most to the variation of metabolites in steroid saponins biosynthesis, while sunshine duration and mean annual temperature contributed the most to the variation in fatty acids. This study provides valuable information for understanding the effects of environmental factors on the production of bioactive chemicals by medicinal crops.

Breeding of medicinal and essential oil crops in VILAR: achievements and prospects.

This review discusses the main methods of breeding material development, the current state, problems and prospects for medicinal and essential oil plants breeding. The relevance of this area has especially increased due to the sanctions, the resulting shortage of medicinal plants and their low quality, which does not meet the requirements of the pharmaceutical industry. To produce a stable plant raw material base, it is necessary to actively develop a breeding process to create new highly productive varieties of medicinal plants resistant to biotic and abiotic environments. In breeding with the use of modern molecular biological methods, related species and generic complexes of the All-Russian Research Institute of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (VILAR) collection can be involved, where there is extensive original genetic material of medicinal, essential oil, rare and endangered species. In the breeding of medicinal and essential oil crops, traditional methods of individual and individual-family selection, polyploidy, chemical mutagenesis and a combination of methods to obtain original breeding material are still promising. VILAR has created more than 90 varieties of medicinal and essential oil crops, most of which have been approved for use throughout the Russian Federation.