Analysis of 6-methoxy podophyllotoxin and podophyllotoxin in hairy root cultures of Linum album Kotschy ex Boiss

Linum album is a herbaceous medicinal plant that contains some lignans with antiviral and anticancer properties such as podophyllotoxin (PTOX) and 6-methoxy podophyllotoxin (MPTOX). In this research, hairy root cultures of L. album were established by transformation with Agrobacterium rhizogenes strains LBA9402, A4, AR15834 and Agrobacterium tumefaciens strain C58C1 (pRiA4). The presence of PTOX and MPTOX in the hairy roots was verified by ESI/MS in positive ion mode. MPTOX was confirmed and its enantiomer determined by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and circular dichroism spectroscopy, respectively. PTOX and MPTOX production was determined by HPLC, in different lines of hairy roots. The results showed that all obtained hairy root lines produced higher yield of lignans than mother plant roots. In addition, the lignan content in the roots derived from A. rhizogenes strain LBA9402 was higher than in those obtained from A. tumefaciens strain C58C1.