Sonja Gadzovska1,2

1Institute of Biology, Faculty of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, University “Ss. Cyril and Methodius”, Archimedova 5, P.O. Box 162, 1000 Skopje, Macedonia

2Laboratoire de Biologie des Ligneux et des Grandes Cultures, UPRES EA 1207, UFRFaculté des Sciences, Université d’Orléans, BP 6759, 45067 Orléans, Cedex 2, France

The importance of Hypericum perforatum L. as a medicinal plant is mainly due to the

presence of naphtodianthrones such as hypericin and pseudohypericin. Three in vitro

experimental model systems: shoots, calli and cells were evaluated for their ability to produce phenylpropanoids and naphtodiantrones. To determine whether secondary metabolite productions could be enhanced, in vitro cultures were exposed to exogenous application of chemical elicitors (jasmonic acid, salicylic acid, pectin and chitin). To assess responses to biotic elicitors, cell suspensions were treated with mycelium extracts from three fungi: Fusarium oxysporum, Phoma exigua and Botrytis cinerea.

Hypericum shoots exhibit higher yield of secondary metabolite productions compared with calli and cells. On the other side, shoots did not give clear cut answer to exogenously applied elicitors, but calli and cells showed remarkably fast and strong response. Cell suspensions were showed as a very efficient experimental model system for observing secondary metabolite productions upon elicitor treatment. Jasmonic acid and salicylic acid could be proposed as general elicitors for secondary metabolite production, in contrast with pectin and chitin. Fungal elicitors could also be considered as very efficient elicitors for secondary metabolite productions in cell suspensions. Secondary metabolite production in Hypericum cells can be partially changed by supplementation of these elicitors and well controlled cultures could be used as a source for rapid and increased production of hypericin and pseudohypericin.