Crown gall culture and production of tanshinone in Salvia miltiorrhiza.

Crown galls were induced by direct infection of sterile seedlings with Agrobacterium tumefaciens C58, and the transformation was proved by opine identification. The crown galls grew well in a hormone-free medium. B5 and MS basic media were good for the growth of crown galls (strain Ca), which increased up to 102 and 90 times in a month, respectively. However, 67-V and WP basic media are good for tanshinone production. It has been shown that crown galls can be utilized as a culture system to produce secondary metabolites.