Atropine and scopolamine movement by various cultured tissues of Duboisia leichhardtii

Summary We examined the uptake, release and metabolism of atropine and scopolamine by cell-suspension, root, shoot and leaf cultures of Duboisia leichhardtii . The findings showed that all plant tissues examined, regardless of their differentiation states, absorbed these alkaloids from the culture media. However, the alkaloids were only released by cultured cells and roots and not by cultured shoots and leaves. All cultures, except the suspension cells, metabolized exogenous atropine; scopolamine was the major product of roots and 6-hydroxyatropine of shoots and leaves. However, the scopolamine metabolite was not detected in any tissue. The half life of exogenous atropine in shoots and roots was about 2 and 4 weeks, respectively.