Transgenic plant cell cultures: A promising approach for secondary metabolite production

Plants are an important resource for many novel bio-active compounds. As plant-derived compounds exhibit wide-ranging therapeutic and pharmaceutical properties with limited side effects, they are widely used for treating several diseases. Today, a variety of distinct plant secondary metabolites (SM) are serving as essential drugs, widely used around the globe. In addition, plant SM are used as pigments, natural dyes, flavors, food preservatives, fragrances, and as modern biopesticides. Some if the challenges of isolating metabolites include the wild species loss, low metabolite yield, and variations in phytochemical content with respect to habitat, method of extraction, etc. Alternatively, the use of biotechnological approaches will be very advantageous. In this regard, transgenic plant cell culture technology can be a reliable way for the large-scale production of plant-based products under controlled conditions. Besides, the potential to use this method for the production of various pharmaceutical compounds and SM is enormous. This is because transgenic cells can be manipulated in vitro to increase the accumulation of desired compounds and their productivity. The present chapter emphasizes on the application, scale-up methods, and current and future prospects for the production of valuable SM through transgenic plant cell culture approaches. Also, technical challenges involved in SM production are highlighted. The increased production of SM using transgenic plant cell cultures certainly benefit several sectors, such as the herbal, flavor, cosmetic, and pharmaceutical industries.