Effect of Abiotic Stresses on the Adaptation of Metabolites Like Total Phenols, Flavonoids and Alkaloids in Tissue Cultured Plant of Gloriosa Superba

To study the effect of stresses on secondary metabolite adaptation, cultured plants of G. superba on Murashige-Skoog (MS) medium were exposed to abiotic stress created artificially by applying different light period (12, 14 and 16 hrs), different pH (6, 7 and 8.5) and different temperature (25, 30 and 35°c). The extract of G. superba, extracted with 95% methanol used to determine the effect of abiotic stress on the quantity of phenol, flavonoids and alkaloids. The content of phenolics was significantly not different in the plants grow under different physical stresses; it ranges from 0.444±0.004 to 1.392±0.02 mg TA/g extract. Plants cultured under different temperature were found to have the highest TPC values 1.176±0.007, 1.301±0.02 mg TA/g extract and 1.392±0.02 mg TA/g extract at 25, 30 and 35˚C temperature respectively. The concentrations of flavonoids in plant extracts ranged from 0.032±0.03 to 0.268±0.002 mg QE/g extract. The highest flavonoid content 0.241±0.002, 0.268±0.002 and 0.247±0.002 mg QE/g extract was identified in the extracts of G. Superba grown under temperature stress in 25, 30 and 35ºC. Alkaloids content was found high (11.308±0.41mg Col/g extract) in plant cultured at a 25ºC temperature, whereas at high temperature (30 and 35ºC) decrease accumulation of alkaloids. Present study concluded that the temperature was highly responsible for the best adaptation of secondary metabolites in G. superba as compared to pH and photoperiods.

Keywords: Gloriosa superba, Abiotic stress, Alkaloids, Flavonoids, Phenols.