Production of parthenolide in organ cultures of feverfew

In vitro culture ofTanacetum parthenium (L.) Sch.Bip. was initiated from aseptically germinated seedlings. culture was derived from nodal explants of the seedlings on MS medium containing 4.44 μM (1.0 mg 1−1 ) 6-benzylaminopurine (BA) and 0.54 μM (0.1 mg 1−1) of α-naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA). Transformed roots were obtained by infection of the stems of aseptically grown seedlings withAgrobacterium rhizogenes LBA 9402. The parthenolide content in the cultivated plant organs was investigated by RP-HPLC. The production of the compound was strongly influenced by the genotype of the parent plant and ranged from 0.13% to 0.75% dry weight in the shoots of the rooted plantlets grownin vitro. The yield of the compound in multiple shoot cultures ofT.parthenium reached 60% of that found in the shoots of rooted plantlets. In contrast to shoots, only trace amounts of parthenolide could be detected in some clones of transformed roots and the roots of plantlets.