Ginsenoside accumulation profiles in long- and short-term cell suspension and adventitious root cultures in Panax ginseng

In this study, we compared two in vitro culture systems, dedifferentiated cell suspension culture and differentiated adventitious root culture, using inoculum from long-term (20-year culture period) and short-term (1-year culture period) cultures, for the production of ginsenosides in wild ginseng (Panax ginseng). Increases in biomass and ginsenoside content were monitored in a 3-L bioreactor. The biomass in short-term cell suspension and adventitious root cultures increased at a faster rate than that in the long-term cultures, reaching a peak after 4 and 8 weeks of culture, respectively. In long term cultured materials, the biomass of cell suspension and adventitious root cultures decreased by 1.67- and 1.52-fold, respectively. Although the amount of ginsenosides in cell suspension and adventitious root cultures varied during the culture periods, the total ginsenoside content remained constant. These data suggest that both culture systems are advantageous for the production of different ginsenosides for pharmaceutical purposes.