In vitro Production of Secondary Metabolites Using Elicitor in Catharanthus roseus : A Case Study

Secondary metabolites are mainly derived from plants and are used by humans from time immemorial. A plant cell, tissue, and organ culture has an inherent capacity to manufacture valuable chemical compounds as the parent plant does in nature. In vitro plant materials are one of the good sources for the production of secondary metabolite and elicitation can be used as one of the important tool in order to improve the synthesis of these compounds. In a variety of plant cell cultures, elicitors have increased production of terpenoid indole alkaloids, isoflavonoid phytoalexins, serquiterpenoid phytoalexin, coumarins etc. Although elicitation has been carried out in large number of medicinal plants, we extensively studied it in Catharanthus roseus, because it is an important source of anticancer compounds Vinblastine (VLB) and Vincristine (VCR). The use of elicitor is also important in order to meet the market demands, for reducing production costs and for in-depth investigation of biochemical and metabolic pathways. This information helps us in manipulation of biosynthetic pathways which can be used as a powerful tool to make natural product-like compounds.