Quantitative determination of cultured strawberry-cell heterogeneity by image analysis: effects of medium modification on anthocyanin accumulation

Cultured plant cells are often highly heterogeneous in terms of secondary metabolite production. We have developed a quantitative determination method that uses an image processing system to estimate such individual cell characteristics as content of the secondary metabolite, anthocyanin. In this study, strawberry cells producing anthocyanins were grown in modified Linsmaier-Skoog medium. Anthocyanin accumulation profiles of individual cells depended on medium compositions and were quantitatively determined using the new method. The modified medium supplemented with riboflavin and high sugar concentration showed a markedly higher anthocyanin accumulation profile and pigmented cell ratio than the other modified media. The maximum content was about 11mg (g-fresh cell weight)(-1), which was three times higher than that in the control medium. Moreover, the anthocyanin accumulation profiles in the individual cells cultured in all modified media could be approximated to the parts of the normal distribution curves with the constant variance.     

High anthocyanin accumulation in the dark by strawberry (Fragaria ananassa) callus

Fragaria ananassa (strawberry) callus, which produced high amounts of anthocyanin in the dark, was isolated from a cell line not producing anthocyanin. The isolated callus (FAR) was homogeneous and more than 90% of the cells were pigmented. The FAR callus accumulated more than 1000 g of anthocyanin per g fresh cell in the dark. Four different basal solid media were examined to maintain FAR callus: Though growth rate and anthocyanin concentration were different on each media, total anthocyanin production was about the same at 400 g anthocyanin/0.1 g fresh cell wt after 22 days. This FAR cell line could therefore be used for the industrial production of anthocyanin.     

Conditioned medium from heterogeneous plants (rose and grape) on cell growth and anthocyanin synthesis of Fragaria ananassa

Rose and grape cells were cultured under 800 lux for 1 week, and these broths were used as conditioned medium for stimulate anthocyanin synthesis of strawberry suspension cells. Anthocyanin synthesis in strawberry cells was enhanced to produce 1000 ug/g cells after 2 days of culturing in the conditioned medium prepared from white grape callus which does not produce anthocyanin, and the enhancement was significantly (p < 0.05) greatest and it was 5 fold greater than that of the control medium. Stimulation by conditioned media also showed a concentration-dependent response for anthocyanin synthesis, although there was only a slight difference (4.0-4.8 g) in cell growth among the heterogeneous conditioned media after 2 days of culturing. However after 5 days, cell growth using 50% of conditioned media from red grape callus was 14.6 g cell weight and 15 g in the control.     

Stimulation of anthocyanin synthesis in grape (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Vitis vinifera</Emphasis>) cell cultures by pulsed electric fields and ethephon

Anthocyanin from grape cell cultures can be used as a natural alternative to synthetic dyes; particularly due to their reported health-promoting properties. In this study, production of anthocyanin in cell suspension culture of Vitis vinifera was evaluated following treatment with either ethephon and/or pulsed electric fields (PEF). Overall, total production of anthocyanin increased in treated cells compared to untreated cells. Treatment of cell suspension with PEF at day 14 of culture resulted in 1.7-fold increase (1.42 mg/g DW) in anthocyanin content when compared to control cells; while, treatment with ethephon resulted in 2.3-fold increase (1.99 mg/g DW) in anthocyanin content. When cells were treated with both ethephon and PEF, 2.5-fold increase in anthocyanin content (2.2 mg/g DW) was observed. These findings demonstrate that PEF induces a defense response in plant cells, and it may also alter the dielectric properties of cells and/or cell membranes, and would serve as a viable elicitor of secondary metabolites in plant cell cultures.     

中间产物对玫瑰茄培养细胞合成花青苷的影响

用Ｂ５培养基悬浮培养产色素的玫瑰茄培养细胞,培养１３天时,花青苷产量最高,为０．２５ｇ／Ｌ。培养基中添加终浓度为１０＾－６ｍｏｌ／Ｌ的外源Ｌ－Ｐｈｅ能够显著地增加产色素细胞花青苷的积累量。浓度为１０＾－７ｍｏｌ／Ｌ的槲皮素,可使悬浮培养的玫瑰茄细胞花青苷产量提高１．３倍,无论是Ｌ－Ｐｈｅ还是槲皮素均不能启动不产色素的细胞系产花青苷。     

Effect of sucrose and methyl jasmonate on biomass and anthocyanin production in cell suspension culture of Melastoma malabathricum (Melastomaceae)

Melastoma malabathricum, belongs to the Melastomaceae family, is an important medicinal plant widely distributed from Madagascar to Australia, that is used in traditional remedies for the treatment of various ailments. Besides its medicinal properties, it has been identified as a potential source of anthocyanin production. The present study was carried out to investigate the effect of sucrose and methyl jasmonate and feeding time on cell biomass yield and anthocyanin production in cell suspension culture of M. malabathricum. Addition of different concentrations of sucrose into the cell culture of M. malabathricum influenced cell biomass and pigment accumulation. The addition of methyl jasmonate was found to have no effect on cell biomass but the presence of higher amount (12.5-50 mg/L) had caused a reduction in anthocyanin production and accumulation. MS medium supplemented with 30 g/L sucrose and 3.5 mg/L of MeJA added on cero day and 3rd day produced high fresh cell mass at the end of nine days of culture but did not support the production of anthocyanins. However, cells cultured in the medium supplemented with 45 g/L sucrose without MeJA showed the highest pigment content (0.69 +/- 0.22 CV/g-FCM). The cells cultured in MS medium supplemented with 30 g/L sucrose with 3.5 mg/L MeJA added on the 3rd and 6th day of culture, showed the lowest pigment content (0.37-0.40 CV/g-FCM). This study indicated that MeJA was not necessary but sucrose was needed for the enhancement of cell growth and anthocyanin production in M. malabathricum cell cultures.     

Induction of anthocyanin accumulation in rose suspension-cultured cells by conditioned medium of strawberry suspension cultures

A conditioned medium (CM) prepared from suspended cultures of strawberry, Fragaria ananassa, which stimulated anthocyanin accumulation in cultured strawberry cells, was applied to the suspension-cultured cells of rose, Rosa hybrida sp which did not normally produce anthocyanin. When the rose cells were transferred into the CM, it induced anthocyanin formation and accumulation in the rose cells. It is suggested that the CM may be effective for inducing anthocyanin accumulation in cultured cells of other species. This revised version was published online in June 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Effect of mannitol and glucose-induced osmotic stress on growth,water relations,and solute composition of cell suspension cultures of poplar (Populus deltoides var.Occidentalis) in relation to anthocyanin accumulation

Summary A cell suspension culture of poplar (Populus deltoides (Marsh.) Bartr. var.occidentalis Rydb.), accumulating the anthocyanin pigment, cyanidin 3-glucoside, in the lag phase of culture growth, was subjected to osmotic stress with glucose and mannitol. Osmotic stress treatments resulted in growth suppression and higher anthocyanin accumulation compared with unstressed cells. Both an increase in the proportion of pigmented cells and an increase in the concentration of anthocyanin in the pigmented cells were responsible for high anthocyanin content of cultured cells subjected to osmotic stress. The osmotic stress induced by glucose suppressed growth more than that by mannitol and produced higher anthocyanin levels. Only small amounts of [U-¹⁴C]mannitol were taken up and metabolized by the cells. Stressed cells accumulated sugars and free amino acids to a different extent resulting in altered cell sugar-to-amino acid ratios. The accumulation of osmotically active solutes and cell growth suppression may both be responsible for the accumulation of anthocyanin in stressed cells.     

Manipulating anthocyanin composition in Vitis vinifera suspension cultures by elicitation with jasmonic acid and light irradiation

Jasmonic acid altered the accumulation of major anthocyanins in Vitis vinifera cell culture. Peonidin 3-glucoside content at day three was increased from 0.3 to 1.7 mg g^–1 dry cell wt while other major anthocyanins were increased by smaller increments. By day 14, the content of methylated and acylated anthocyanins (peonidin 3-p-coumaroylglucoside and malvidin 3-p-coumaroylglucoside) was 6.3 mg g^–1 DCW, in response to treatment with jasmonic acid, and comprising 45% (w/w) of total anthocyanins. In comparison, the untreated control culture contained 1.2 mg g^–1 DCW which made up 32% (w/w) of total anthocyanins. Light further enhanced anthocyanin accumulation induced by jasmonic acid elicitation. The content of peonidin 3-glucoside at day 3 was 6.6 mg g^–1 DCW, 22-fold higher than control cultures while the content in response to light irradiation alone was 0.6 mg g^–1 DCW. When a highly pigmented cell line was elicited with jasmonic acid total anthocyanins increased from 9.2 to 20.7 mg g^–1 DCW, but there was no change in the anthocyanin composition.     

Analysis of pigmentation in individual cultured plant cells using an image processing system

Anthocyanin accumulation in strawberry (Fragaria ananassa) cells cultured on a solid medium was monitored using an image-processing system that did not require direct sampling or destruction of the cells. Because of the intercellular heterogeneity of secondary metabolite production in plant cell cultures, the maximum metabolite concentration in individual cells is often more than 10 times higher than that of the average concentration. An image-processing based method enabled the growth and the pigmentation behavior of individual cells to be traced. Changes in the time courses of the anthocyanin content of individual cells differed from each other, although the average anthocyanin contents increased gradually with time in a batch culture. However, these various changing patterns in the anthocyanin content of each cell were independent of the cell cycle. In addition, image analysis revealed that the two cells just after cell division were almost identical to each other both in size and anthocyanin content. The proposed method which uses an image-processing system provides a useful tool for analyzing the secondary metabolism in individual cultured plant cells.     

Characterization of Intravacuolar Pigmented Structures in Anthocyanin-Containing Cells of Sweet Potato Suspension Cultures

Intravacuolar pigmented structures occurred in anthocyanin-producingcultured cells of sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas) were characterized.Formation of the pigmented structures in sweet potato cellswas induced by transfer of callus cultured in 2,4-D containingagar medium into 2,4-D free liquid medium under continuous illumination.These structures were found in the vacuoles. The pigmented structureswere isolated from the protoplasts by precipitation in 60% (w/w)sucrose after centrifugation. Electron microscopic observationsof the anthocyanin-containing cultured cells showed these structureshad neither membrane boundary nor internal structures, and werefound as strongly osmiophilic globules in vacuoles. Numeroussmall osmiophilic globules were observed in central vacuolesat the early stage of anthocyanin accumulation, but not foundin cytoplasm. Similar pigmented structures in vacuoles werealso formed by treatment with neutral red. These observationsindicate that these pigmented structure is the high densityand insoluble globules highly concentrated with anthocyanin,which was synthesized in cytoplasm and transported to the centralvacuoles. ⁴Present address: Department of Cell Biology, National Institutefor Basic Biology Myodaijicho, Okazaki, 444 Japan     

Enhanced anthocyanin production by repeated-batch culture of strawberry cells with medium shift

Repeated-batch cultures of strawberry cells (Fragaria ananassa cv. Shikinari) subjected to four medium-shift procedures (constant LS medium, constant B5 medium, alternation between LS and B5 starting from LS and alternation between LS and B5 starting from B5) were investigated for the enhanced anthocyanin productivity. To determine the optimum period for repeated batch cultures, two medium-shift periods of 9 and 14 days were studied, which represent the end of the exponential growth phase and the stationary phase. By comparison with the corresponding batch cultures, higher anthocyanin productivity was achieved for all the repeated-batch cultures at a 9-day medium-shift period. The average anthocyanin productivity was enhanced 1.7- and 1.76-fold by repeated-batch cultures in constant LS and constant B5 medium at a 9-day shift period for 45 days, respectively. No further improvement was observed when the medium was alternated between LS (the growth medium) and B5 (the production medium). Anthocyanin production was unstable at a 14-day shift period regardless of the medium-shift procedures. The results show that it is feasible to improve anthocyanin production by a repeated-batch culture of strawberry cells.     

Effects of low nitrate and high sugar concentrations on anthocyanin content and composition of grape (Vitis vinifera L.) cell suspension

In pigmented cells of Vitis vinifera suspension cultures, best accumulation of anthocyanins was obtained when nitrate concentration was reduced from 25 mM to 6.25 mM and when sucrose concentration was increased from 88 mM to 132 mM. Under such conditions growth was greatly decreased. However, cell viability was maintained. The increases in anthocyanins in pigmented cells were due largely to increases in peonidin — glucoside. The high sucrose and the low nitrate concentrations can be one of the important culture factors in controlling of anthocyanin production by cell cultures.     

Expression of a vacuolar protein (VP24) in anthocyanin-producing cells of sweet potato in suspension culture.

VP24, an abundant protein of 24 kD, was found to accumulate in the anthocyanin-containing vacuoles of cells of sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas) in suspension culture. Light-induced expression of VP24 was analyzed by immunoblotting in three different cell lines that produced anthocyanins at different rates. The expression of VP24 was closely correlated with the accumulation of anthocyanin in these cell lines. Immunocytochemical detection of VP24 with specific antibodies on thin sections showed that VP24 was localized in the intravacuolar pigmented globules (cyanoplasts) in the anthocyanin-containing vacuoles and not in the tonoplast. No VP24 immunogold labeling was detected in the vacuoles of the cell line that does not produce anthocyanin. We suggest that VP24 may be involved in the formation of the cyanoplast via an interaction with anthocyanin, and that it may play an important role in the trapping in vacuoles of large amounts of anthocyanins that have been transported into these vacuoles.     

Comparison of antioxidant capacity and phenolic compounds of berries, chokecherry and seabuckthorn

Antioxidant capacity and phenolic compounds (phenolic acids and anthocyanins) of four berry fruits (strawberry, Saskatoon berry, raspberry and wild blueberry), chokecherry and seabuckthorn were compared in the present study. Total phenolic content and total anthocyanin content ranged from 22.83 to 131.88 g/kg and 3.51 to 13.13 g/kg, respectively. 2,2-Diphenyl-1-picryhydrazyl free radical scavenging activity ranged from 29.97 to 78.86%. Chokecherry had the highest antioxidant capacity when compared with berry fruits and seabuckthorn. The highest caffeic acid, gallic acid and trans-cinnamic acid levels were found in chokecherry (6455 mg/kg), raspberry (1129 mg/kg) and strawberry (566 mg/kg), respectively. Caffeic acid was also the major phenolic acid in Saskatoon berry (2088 mg/kg) and wild blueberry (1473 mg/kg). The findings that chokecherry has very high antioxidant capacity and caffeic acid levels, are useful for developing novel value-added antioxidant products and also provide evidence essential for breeding novel cultivars of fruit plants with strong natural antioxidants.     

Greenish blue flower colour of Strongylodon macrobotrys

The flower colour of Strongyledon macrobotrys is luminous blue green and attracts bats for pollination. The chemical basis for development of the flower colour was investigated. The flower contained an anthocyanin (malvin) and a flavone (saponarin), approximately 1:9 (malvin: saponarin) in molar ratio. The pH of the pigmented epidermal cell sap of the jade vine petal was exceptionally high, 7.90, while the pH value of the colourless inner tissue was 5.60. Copigmentation test using the mixtures of malvin and saponarin (1:9 M ratio) at various pH values revealed that the characteristic blue green colour of the jade vine is developed by copigmentation of malvin with saponarin in slightly alkaline cell sap, pH 7.9. In the copigmentation in slightly alkaline condition, saponarin shows a strong yellow colour, which gives a greenish tone to the flower colour.     

玫瑰茄悬浮细胞合成花青素的光效应研究

光照对悬浮培养的玫瑰茄细胞生物量无影响。随着光照强度增大,玫瑰茄细胞合成花青素的量增加,光照强度３１．０ｗ／ｍ２为饱和光照强度,超过该强度,玫瑰茄细胞合成花青素的量不再进一步增加;可见光中蓝光（４２０～５３０ｎｍ）是促进玫瑰茄细胞合成花青素最有效单色光,光强为３０．０ｗ／ｍ２,接种量为０．２ｇ湿细胞的５０ｍｌ培养液经１６ｄ培养,花青素产量为８．９７ｍｇ／５０ｍｌ,高出相同光照强度全色光下的６．５３ｍｇ／ｍｌ;黄光和绿光分别有一定的促进作用。当黑暗下的培养时间不超过８ｄ,后期经过不少于８ｄ的光照可以诱导出和全程光照相当的花青素产量,分别为６．６４和６．７２ｍｇ／５０ｍｌ（总培养时间不少于１６ｄ）。当黑暗下培养时间超过１２ｄ,由于营养成分消耗,光照延长,花青素产量也无法提高,添加１０ｍｌ新鲜培养基再进行光诱导,花青素产量可以提高（６．７５ｍｇ／５０ｍｌ）。     

Application of imaging tools to plant cell culture: Relationship between plant cell aggregation and flavonoid production

Summary Image analysis tools were developed to measure biomass concentration, aggregate size and distribution, and pigmentation from anthocyanin-producing cell suspension cultures of ohelo (Vaccinium pahalae). The ex situ imaging system could image cell aggregates from 30 μm to 2 mm in diameter. The image analysis algorithm was based on extracted geometric features and morphological methods for biomass volume estimates, and hue, saturation, and intensity color characteristics for pigmentation estimates. Detailed information available from sampled cell culture images was validated by comparison to standard destructive manual measurements. Image analysis measurements revealed that pigment accumulation was negatively correlated with aggregate size. Although a substantial proportion of small aggregates remained colorless, the highly-pigmented small aggregates, 18 to 238 μm in breadth, contributed over 70% of the culture anthocyanin production (mg L⁻¹), despite their minor contribution to the overall biomass. The relative frequency of pigmented aggregates was higher in large-size aggregate classes; however, the pigmented sectors were mostly confined to only the periphery of the aggregates. As a result, large aggregate classes had only a minor contribution to overall culture anthocyanin yield.     

Intercellular and Intercultural Heterogeneity in Secondary Metabolite Accumulation in Cultures of Catharanthus roseus following Cell Line Selection

Hall, R. D. and Yeoman, M. M. 1987. Intercellular and interculturalheterogeneity in secondary metabolite accumulation in culturesof Catharanthus roseus following cell line selection.—J.exp. Bot. 38: 1391–1398. Anthocyanin accumulation in a stock culture of Catharanthusroseus was consistently found, using microscopic and microdensitometrictechniques, to involve only c. 10% of the cell population. However,an analysis of 26 cell lines isolated from this culture hasindicated that all of the cells within the culture were, theoretically,capable of anthocyanin synthesis. Nevertheless, these linesdid display substantially different capacities for anthocyaninaccumulation. Detailed studies on individual cells from thesecultures have revealed that the variation in accumulation wasprimarily due to differing proportions of pigmented (i.e. productive)cells rather than differing mean intracellular anthocyanin concentrationswithin these cells. Both the proportion of productive cellsand the overall culture yield of the cell lines varied by >30-fold whereas the mean intracellular anthocyanin concentrationvaried by < 2-fold. The relevance of these results to thepossible control mechanisms involved in secondary metaboliteproduction in this and other culture systems is discussed. Key words: Catharanthus roseus, cell culture, anthocyanin, heterogeneity     

Analysis of pigment accumulation heterogeneity in plant cell population by image-processing system

Plant-cultured cells are often highly heterogeneous in secondary metabolite productivity. The industrial application for large-scale metabolite production requires establishment of a stable high-producing cell line. In this study, image analysis of the individual cell is investigated as a method for evaluation of a heterogeneous cell population, and compared with the conventional method of estimation, which is based on average-cell productivity. Among strawberry cells producing anthocyanins, cells with a wide-range of pigment concentration were observed and maximum anthocyanin content was 10 times higher than the average value. In addition, a change of the frequency distribution was revealed in batch cultivation.