Stress-Induced Secondary Metabolite Profiling in Callus Cultures: Insights from GC-MS and HPLC-MS Analysis.

Throughout human history, wild plant resources have played an invaluable role, serving as critical sources of food, medicine, and industrial materials. This study examined the callus cultures of Y.C. Ma, a medicinal desert plant, by subjecting them to abiotic stress under controlled in vitro conditions. The secondary metabolite profiles were then analyzed using GC-MS and qTOF-UHPLC-MS. The GC-MS analysis revealed several bioactive compounds of pharmaceutical interest, such as γ-sitosterol and homovanillyl alcohol. PhGs, including echinacoside and salidroside, were quantified for the first time across 16 callus samples exposed to various stress treatments. The application of 0.1% NaCO for 50 days resulted in the highest accumulation of echinacoside (13,378.9 µg/mL), and heavy metal stress notably increased salidroside levels to 27.0 µg/mL. There was a clear correlation between callus pigmentation and metabolic activity: orange and white calli produced significantly more PhGs than dark calli. These results suggest that callus cultures could be a sustainable, controllable platform for producing high-value secondary metabolites. This reinforces the importance of wild plant resources in modern science and industry.