One step more towards taxane production through enhanced Taxus propagation

We have developed a high-yielding procedure for the in vitro propagation of juvenile material of Taxus baccata involving a combination of seed handlin g and culture on WP culture medium supplemented with sucrose (2%), activate d charcoal (0.5%) and BAP (22.19 mM) for 30 days, followed by 40 days on ho rmone-free medium. Shoot apical ends should be decapitated to obtain propag ation rates up to 12- to 18-fold per subculture period (70 days). In this w ay the high genetic variability of the juvenile material can be used in the most productive way. In addition to producing large numbers of yew plants (difficult to get by traditional methods), this procedure allows the fast s creening of individuals for their taxane content. A negative correlation be tween growth and secondary metabolite content was found for paclitaxel. The positive correlation with 10-deacetyl baccatin III accumulation reflects o nce more the commercial viability of using 10-deacetyl baccatin III extract ion as an alternative to taxane production, but this time opening up the po ssibility of selecting genotypes with both characteristics: fast growth and high productivity.