title: Strategies to enhance biologically active-secondary metabolites in cell cultures of Artemisia - current trends.
abstract: The genus Artemisia has been utilized worldwide due to its immense potential for protection against various diseases, especially malaria. Artemisia absinthium, previously renowned for its utilization in the popular beverage absinthe, is gaining resurgence due to its extensive pharmacological activities. Like A. annua, this species exhibits strong biological activities like antimalarial, anticancer and antioxidant. Although artemisinin was found to be the major metabolite for its antimalarial effects, several flavonoids and terpenoids are considered to possess biological activities when used alone and also to synergistically boost the bioavailability of artemisinin. However, due to the limited quantities of these metabolites in wild plants, in vitro cultures were established and strategies have been adopted to enhance medicinally important secondary metabolites in these cultures. This review elaborates on the traditional medicinal uses of Artemisia species and explains current trends to establish cell cultures of A. annua and A. absinthium for enhanced production of medicinally important secondary metabolites.
authors.affiliation: a Center for Biotechnology and Microbiology , Department of Biotechnology, University of Swat , Pakistan.|b Department of Biotechnology, Faculty of Biological Sciences , Quaid-i-Azam University Islamabad , Pakistan.
authors.forename: Mohammad
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ali
authors.affiliation: b Department of Biotechnology, Faculty of Biological Sciences , Quaid-i-Azam University Islamabad , Pakistan.
authors.forename: Bilal Haider
authors.initials: BH
authors.lastname: Abbasi
authors.affiliation: a Center for Biotechnology and Microbiology , Department of Biotechnology, University of Swat , Pakistan.
authors.forename: Nisar
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Ahmad
authors.affiliation: a Center for Biotechnology and Microbiology , Department of Biotechnology, University of Swat , Pakistan.
authors.forename: Haji
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Khan
authors.affiliation: c Mid-Florida Research and Education Center and Department of Plant Pathology , University of Florida/Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences , Apopka , FL , USA.
authors.forename: Gul Shad
authors.initials: GS
authors.lastname: Ali
mesh_terms: D000962:Antimalarials; D000975:Antioxidants; D019306:Artemisia / Q000378:metabolism*; D001628:Beverages; D005419:Flavonoids
chemical_list: D000962:Antimalarials; D000975:Antioxidants; D005419:Flavonoids
keywords: In vitro; antimalarial; antioxidants; artemisinin; culture optimization; growth regulators