Improved accumulation of betulin and betulinic acid in cell suspension culture of <i>Betula pendula</i> roth by abiotic and biotic elicitors

Betulin (B) and betulinic acid (BA) are two triterpenes with diverse pharmacological and physiological actions. Elicitation of <i>Betula pendula</i> Roth cell cultures by elicitors is an excellent strategy to increase B and BA levels. Six abiotic and biotic elicitors were studied to improve accumulation of B and BA in the cell culture of <i>B. pendula</i>. The B and BA production in treated cells was verified by HPLC. The results showed the maximum growth index (7) on day 3 in cells treated with 0.5 mg L⁻¹ chlorocholine chloride (CCC). The increased accumulation of BA in the cells treated with 200 mg L⁻¹ of chitosan was found to be 5.9 × (6.5 mg g⁻¹ DW) higher over control cells. Treating the cells with 2 mg L⁻¹ of CCC, after 7 days, led to 149.3× enhancement of B content (19.4 mg g⁻¹ DW) over the controls. Production of this triterpenoid at a much shorter time with a much higher growth rate can be economic and lead to producing large amounts of B and BA for anti-cancer and HIV drugs preparation.