Effects of Phosphate, Precursor and Exogenous Berberine on the Production of Alkaloid in Plant Cell Cultures

The effects of phosphate concentration in the medium, feeding of biosynthetic precursor, and the addition of exogenous berberine on cell growth and berberine production were studied in cell suspension cultures of Thalictrum rugosum. The depletion of phosphate in the medium enhanced the specific productivity up to twofold with significant release of berberine into the medium. Extracellular berberine was 19% of the total in the culture without phosphate while it was 2-5% of total berberine in the culture with even low amounts of phosphate. Precursor feeding was not effective in enhancing alkaloid formation. Initial presence of exogenous berberine did not have much effect on cell growth and alkaloid production. It was found that the cells have the capacity to take up large quantities of berberine. When $500{\;}mg{\cdot}l^{-1}$ of berberine was added exogenously at the beginning, 81% of total berberine was found in the cells.