Research Projects

The project proposal focuses on the potential of medicinal plants, saussurea lappa and Astilbe rivularis, to produce therapeutically important plant metabolites. The research aims to develop strategies for alternative use and conservation of threatened plants using Agrobacterium rhizogenes mediated hairy root (HR) and Cell suspension (Cs) cultures. The literature survey reveals the enormous pharmacological potential of s. lappa, particularly the presence of costunolide, an important sesquiterpene lactone. The proposal also aims to isolate and clone a key gene (Germacrene A synthase-GAs) from s. lappa and over-express this gene through HR or Cs systems to produce costunolide. The high therapeutic value of costunolide has significantly increased the demand, and the overexpression of GAs gene may be utilized to enhance sTL through transformed HR or Cs cultures. The project aims to meet the escalating industrial demand for its therapeutically significant metabolites and prevent the endangered medicinal plant from being erratically exploited. The project's significance lies in providing an alternative production source for targeted high-value metabolites, generating new bio-active molecules through modifications on the biosynthetic pathway, and escalating metabolite production through metabolic engineering driven escalation of transgenic HR clones.