Photoautotrophic propagation of Brazilian ginseng [Pfaffia glomerata (Spreng.) Pedersen]

Pfaffia glomerata (Spreng.) Pedersen is a medicinal species of great interest because it produces the phytoecdysteroid 20-hydroxyecdysone (20E). Generally, because of atypical growing conditions, in vitro propagated plants function less efficiently as autotrophs and have poorly developed morphological structures. This study analyzed the autotrophic potential of P. glomerata propagated in vitro and evaluated the influence that this has on 20E biosynthesis. Physiological and structural parameters of plants subjected to heterotrophic, photomixotrophic and photoautotrophic growth conditions were evaluated. Levels of 20E were measured by HPLC. Plants were acclimatized in a mixture of soil, sand and substrate, in a greenhouse. Conditions that provided higher carbon input led to an increase in plant growth, and the presence of sucrose was critical, in closure systems without a gas permeable membrane, for normal anatomical development of the micropropagated plants. The absence of sucrose increased photosynthesis and conditions that enhanced photoautotrophy induced greater levels of 20E. The increase of 20E levels by the photoautotrophic system offers new prospects for increasing the commercial production of this species, and for studies that could elucidate the biosynthetic pathway of phytoecdysteroids in plants.