Content of Thiophenes in Transformed Root Cultures of Argentinian Species of Tagetes

Abstract

The presence of thiophenes in four Argentinian species of Tagetes was studied. T. terniflora HBK and T. minuta L. seedlings contain 5-(4-hydroxy-1-butynyl)-2-2′-bithienyl (BBTOH); 5-(4-acetoxy-1-butynyl)-2,2′-bithienyl (BBTOAc), while T. campanulata Griseb and T. laxa Cabrera seedlings also accumulated BBT and α-T. From the four Tagetes species tested only T. laxa was able to produce transformed roots when infected with Agrobacterium rhizogenes LBA 9402. Several clones of transformed roots were obtained in which the total thiophene content present showed considerable variations (277 to 1773 µg/g FW). The thiophene spectrum, however, was similar between different clones. In addition, the thiophene patterns in these transformed clones differed from that formed in the parent plants.

Key words

Thiophenes - hairy root cultures - Tagetes - Compositae