Department of Botany, Graduate Program in Botany, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Bento Gonçalves 9500, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil.
Mol Biotechnol. 2010 Sep;46(1):94-104. doi: 10.1007/s12033-010-9257-6.
Triterpenoid saponins are a class of plant secondary metabolites with structure derived from the precursor oxidosqualene in which one or more sugar residues are added. They have a wide range of pharmacological applications, such as antiplatelet, hypocholesterolemic, antitumoral, anti-HIV, immunoadjuvant, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, insecticide, fungicide and anti-leishmanial agents. Their accumulation in plant cells is stimulated in response to changes mediated by biotic and abiotic elicitors. The enhancement of saponin yields by methyl jasmonate in plants and cell cultures in several species indicates the involvement of these metabolites in plant defence mechanisms. The elucidation of their biosynthesis at the molecular level has advanced recently. Most studies to date have focused on the participation of early enzymes in the pathway, including oxidosqualene cyclase, squalene synthase and dammarenediol synthase, as well as in isolating and characterizing genes that encode beta-amyrin synthase. Yields of bioactive saponins in various plant species and experimental systems have been successfully increased by treating cells and tissues with jasmonate or by exposing these to oxidative stress. These elicitation and molecular studies are consolidating a robust knowledge platform from which to launch the development of improved sources for commercial supply of bioactive saponins.
三萜皂苷是一类植物次生代谢产物，其结构来源于前体角鲨烯，其中添加了一个或多个糖残基。它们具有广泛的药理应用，如抗血小板、降胆固醇、抗肿瘤、抗 HIV、免疫佐剂、抗炎、抗菌、杀虫剂、杀菌剂和抗利什曼原虫剂。它们在植物细胞中的积累是对生物和非生物激发子介导的变化的刺激。茉莉酸甲酯在几种物种的植物和细胞培养物中对皂苷产量的增强表明这些代谢物参与了植物防御机制。它们在分子水平上的生物合成最近已经得到了阐明。迄今为止，大多数研究都集中在该途径中早期酶的参与上，包括角鲨烯环化酶、鲨烯合酶和达玛烯二醇合酶，以及分离和鉴定编码β-香树脂醇合酶的基因。通过用茉莉酸甲酯处理细胞和组织或使这些细胞和组织暴露于氧化应激，成功地提高了各种植物物种和实验系统中生物活性皂苷的产量。这些激发和分子研究正在巩固一个强大的知识平台，以此为基础，开发出改进的生物活性皂苷商业供应源。
