Biotechnological Approach to Increase Oxyresveratrol Production in Mulberry In Vitro Plants under Elicitation

Abstract

Morus alba L. is used for a range of therapeutic purposes in Asian traditional medicine, and its extracts are reported to be effective against lipidemia, diabetes, and obesity, as well as being hepatoprotective and tyrosinase-inhibitory. They are also included in cosmetic products as anti-aging and skin-whitening agents. Stilbenes, the major bioactive compounds found in M. alba, have received renewed attention recently because of their putative activity against COVID-19. In this study M. alba plants were established in vitro, and the effect of elicitation on plant growth and stilbene accumulation, specifically oxyresveratrol and trans-resveratrol, was investigated. Different concentrations of the elicitors including methyl jasmonate and cyclodextrins were applied, and stilbene levels were determined in leaves, roots, and the culture medium. Elicitation of the M. alba plants with 5 mM cyclodextrins, alone or in combination with 10 µM methyl jasmonate, significantly increased the total phenolic content in the culture medium and leaves after 7 days of treatment. The higher total phenolic content in the roots of control plants and those treated only with methyl jasmonate indicated that cyclodextrins promoted metabolite release to the culture medium. Notably, the cyclodextrin-treated plants with the highest levels of oxy- and trans-resveratrol also had the highest total phenolic content and antioxidant capacity. These results indicate that elicited M. alba in vitro plants constitute a promising alternative source of bioactive stilbenes to supply pharmaceutical and cosmeceutical industries.

Morus Plant Genus: Superb Antidiabetic Activity and Outstanding Source of Nutrients

“…So, several studies were published about the determination of this natural product in its sources or after use [194,195], as well as its isolation [196,197]. Moreover, biosynthesis and laboratory syntheses were widely published and reviewed [198], and many studies investigated the enhancement of oxyresveratrol bioproduction [199,200]. In other but related studies, the enhanced production of mulberry side A was reported [201].…”

Biosynthesis of oxyresveratrol in mulberry (Morus albaL.) is mediated by a group of p-coumaroyl-CoA 2’-hydroxylases acting upstream of stilbene synthases

“…Till now, this combined elicitation has not yet been accomplished using fully-suspended cell cultures of mulberry. Instead, it has only been performed using plantlets (Sabater-Jara et al, 2023) or in hydroxypropyl beta cyclodextrin-treated calli (Komaikul et al, 2019).…”