Biotechnological Approaches to Enhance Plant Secondary Metabolites

Book excerpt: Thousands of secondary metabolites are produced by plants to withstand unfavourable environmental conditions and are important molecules for nutraceutical, agro, cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries, etc. Harvesting of plants for the extraction of these important metabolites can threaten the plant germplasm, and various medicinally important plants are at the verge of extinction. Based on need, various methods and strategies were developed and followed by researchers from time to time to save the plant germplasm and produce important secondary metabolites efficiently to meet their growing demands. Biotechnological Approaches to Enhance Plant Secondary Metabolites: Recent Trends and Future Prospects provides a comprehensive introduction and review of state-of-the-art biotechnological tools in this field of research at global level. The methodologies are highlighted by real data examples in both in vitro and in vivo level studies. The book: • Highlights and provides overviews of the synthesis, classification, biological function and medicinal applications of the recent advancements for the enhanced production of novel secondary metabolites in plants • Provides an overview of the role of induced mutation, salinity stress and brassinosteroids impact to increase the secondary metabolic contents in plants and suggests an increase in enzymatic activity in plants could be due to various point mutations, which in turn could play a role at transcriptome levels • Discusses the significant role of endophytes to enhance the contents of plant secondary metabolites • Alternatively, suggests the urgent need to set up the standard operating procedures using hydroponics system of cultivation for significant enhancement of secondary metabolite contents • Enlists various in vitro techniques to enhance plant secondary metabolites contents using plant tissue culture approaches • Provides a systematic overview of state-of-the-art biotechnological tools CRISPER Cas9 and RNAi to enhance the plant secondary metabolite contents • Recommends CRISPER Cas9 technology over RNAi, ZFNs and TALENs because of its relatively simple and high precision method with an easily programmable tool This serves as a reference book for the researchers working in the field of plant secondary metabolites and pharmaceutical industries at global level.