Bioreactors terpenoids

As de novo synthesis has been proven unsuccessful in most cases, biotransformation of added precursors has been studied extensively. There is evidence that plant cell cultures retain an ability to transform specifically exogenous substrates administered to the cultured cells. Therefore, plant cell cultures are considered to be useful for transforming cheap and plentiful substances into rare and expensive compounds by using the cell culture as a bioreactor. For instance, cofactor dependent specific conversions of terpenoids in suspension cultures of aromatic plants often proceed with high yields and negligible amounts of byproducts. In Fig. (1), three examples of biotransformations of terpenes by plant cell cultures are shown (after [6]). 

Fulzele DP, Heble MR, Rao PS (1995) Production of terpenoid from Artemisia annua L. plantlet cultures in bioreactor. J Biotechnol 40 139-143... 

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