@Article{phyton.2026.074434,
AUTHOR = {Xiaoqing Jiang, Pengchong Li, Hongchuang Liu, Wenjie Dong, Wenjing Liu, Di Wu, Jianping Xue, Fenglan Zhao, Yongbo Duan},
TITLE = {Salicylic Acid-Elicited Alkaloid Accumulation <i>in Pinellia ternata</i> Microtubers: Cytotoxicity and Transcriptomic Analysis},
JOURNAL = {Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany},
VOLUME = {95},
YEAR = {2026},
NUMBER = {1},
PAGES = {--},
URL = {http://www.techscience.com/phyton/v95n1/65804},
ISSN = {1851-5657},
ABSTRACT = {As its tuberous alkaloids induce valuable pharmacological effects, <i>Pinellia ternata</i> has considerable clinical value. However, its production currently fails to meet its demand. <i>In vitro</i> microtuber culture, combined with salicylic acid (SA) elicitation, may provide an effective alternative to traditional field production. In this study, an <i>in vitro P. ternata</i> microtuber induction system was developed and used to evaluate SA-induced elicitation of alkaloid accumulation. The quality of <i>in vitro</i> microtubers was assessed by total alkaloid measurement, a cytotoxicity assay, and transcriptomic analysis. With or without SA treatment, <i>P. ternata</i> microtuber induction was achieved within 60 d using petiole-derived explants, with a microtuber proliferation rate of approximately 17 microtubers per explant. The total alkaloid content of <i>in vitro</i> microtubers elicited with 100 μM SA was equivalent to that of field-grown tubers, while those not treated with SA contained lower alkaloid content. The cytotoxicity assay showed preliminary cytotoxic effects of SA-treated microtubers against the breast cancer cell line SUM159, comparable to field-grown tubers. Transcriptomic analysis revealed many differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in SA-treated <i>in vitro</i> microtubers. Six and twelve DEGs were annotated to the tropane, piperidine, and pyridine alkaloid pathway and the isoquinoline alkaloid pathway, respectively. RT-qPCR confirmed that the genes encoding spermidine synthase (c64642_g1), hyoscyamine (6<i>S</i>)-dioxygenase (c62620_g1), catechol oxidase (c61704_g3), monoamine oxidase (c65996_g3), and aspartate transaminase (c71069_g1) were significantly induced by SA. This study advances the production of <i>P. ternata</i> microtubers without field cultivation and provides considerable genetic information regarding SA-promoted alkaloid accumulation in <i>P</i>. <i>ternata</i>.},
DOI = {10.32604/phyton.2026.074434}
}