Production of salidroside and tyrosol in cell suspension cultures of Rhodiola crenulata

Salidroside and its aglycone tyrosol are important compounds found in Rhodiola plants. In this study, callus derived from Rhodiola crenulata was induced and grown when explants were incubated on a Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium containing various concentrations of 6-benzyaldenine (BA), naphthalene acetic acid (NAA) and thidiazuron (TDZ). Callus was easily initiated from juvenile leaves in half strength MS medium supplemented with 0.5 mg/L BA and 3.0 mg/L NAA, while full strength MS containing 0.5 mg/L TDZ and 0.5 mg/L NAA was the best for callus subculture and subsequent cell suspension culture. The activities of l-phenylalanine ammonia lyase (PAL) and beta-d-glucosidase, two key enzymes in salidroside synthesis, increased at first and subsequently decreased in cell suspension cultures. The salidroside and tyrosol levels in the cell suspension cultures were determined using high-performance liquid chromatography. High levels of salidroside and tyrosol were detected in cell suspension cultures of R. crenulata extracted with 75 % methanol, demonstrating that the biotechnological production of these compounds using plant cell suspension cultures derived from R. crenulata may be an attractive alternative to harvest-based production.