The Impact of Acute Low-Dose Gamma Irradiation on Biomass Accumulation and Secondary Metabolites Production in <i>Cotinus coggygria</i> Scop. and <i>Fragaria × ananassa</i> Duch. Red Callus Cultures
Alexandra-Gabriela Ciocan,
Carmen Maximilian,
Elena Monica Mitoi,
Radu-Cristian Moldovan,
Daniel Neguț,
Cristina-Adela Iuga,
Florența Elena Helepciuc,
Irina Holobiuc,
Mihai Radu,
Tatiana Vassu Dimov,
Gina Cogălniceanu
Affiliations
Alexandra-Gabriela Ciocan
Department of Developmental Biology, Institute of Biology Bucharest of Romanian Academy, 296 Splaiul Independentei Street, 060031 Bucharest, Romania
Carmen Maximilian
Department of Developmental Biology, Institute of Biology Bucharest of Romanian Academy, 296 Splaiul Independentei Street, 060031 Bucharest, Romania
Elena Monica Mitoi
Department of Developmental Biology, Institute of Biology Bucharest of Romanian Academy, 296 Splaiul Independentei Street, 060031 Bucharest, Romania
Radu-Cristian Moldovan
Department of Proteomics and Metabolomics, Research Center for Advanced Medicine—MedFuture, “Iuliu Hațieganu” University of Medicine and Pharmacy Cluj-Napoca, 4-6 Louis Pasteur Street, 400349 Cluj-Napoca, Romania
Daniel Neguț
IRASM Radiation Processing Department, Horia Hulubei National Institute for R&D in Physics and Nuclear Engineering, Reactorului Street 30, 077125 Magurele, Romania
Cristina-Adela Iuga
Department of Proteomics and Metabolomics, Research Center for Advanced Medicine—MedFuture, “Iuliu Hațieganu” University of Medicine and Pharmacy Cluj-Napoca, 4-6 Louis Pasteur Street, 400349 Cluj-Napoca, Romania
Florența Elena Helepciuc
Department of Developmental Biology, Institute of Biology Bucharest of Romanian Academy, 296 Splaiul Independentei Street, 060031 Bucharest, Romania
Irina Holobiuc
Department of Developmental Biology, Institute of Biology Bucharest of Romanian Academy, 296 Splaiul Independentei Street, 060031 Bucharest, Romania
Mihai Radu
Department of Life and Environmental Physics, Horia Hulubei National Institute for R&D in Physics and Nuclear Engineering, Reactorului Street 30, 077125 Magurele, Romania
Tatiana Vassu Dimov
Faculty of Biology, University of Bucharest, Splaiul Independentei 91-95, 050095 Bucharest, Romania
Gina Cogălniceanu
Department of Developmental Biology, Institute of Biology Bucharest of Romanian Academy, 296 Splaiul Independentei Street, 060031 Bucharest, Romania
Cotinus coggygria Scop. (smoketree) and Fragaria × ananassa Duch. (strawberry) are two industrially important species due to their composition in bioactive compounds. In this study, we investigated the effects of acute low-dose gamma irradiation (15, 20, 25, 30, 35 and 40 Gy) on two red callus cultures established in smoketree and strawberry. The biomass production, dry weight, content of phenols, flavonoids, monomeric anthocyanins’, index of anthocyanins polymerization and antioxidant activity were evaluated. For the smoketree callus, a negative correlation between irradiation doses and callus biomass accumulation was observed. For the strawberry callus, irradiation did not significantly affect the accumulation of the biomass. An increased dry weight was observed in irradiated smoketree callus, while for treated strawberry callus, a decrease was recorded. Irradiation with 30 Gy was stimulative for polyphenols’ accumulation in both cultures; however, the increase was significant only in the strawberry callus. The flavonoids increased in the 30 Gy strawberry variants, while it significantly decreased in smoketree callus irradiated with 35 and 40 Gy. In irradiated strawberry callus, except for the 25 Gy variant (1.65 ± 0.4 mg C-3-GE/g DW), all treatments caused an increase in anthocyanins’ accumulation. In smoketree, except for the 15 Gy variant (2.14 ± 0.66 mg C-3-GE/g DW), the irradiation determined an increase in anthocyanins synthesis, with the highest value being seen in the 20 Gy variant (2.8 ± 0.94 mg C-3-GE/g DW). According to UPLC-HRMS investigations, an unidentified compound increased by 99% at the 30 Gy dose in strawberry callus, while in smoketree, maslinic acid increased by 51% after irradiation with 40 Gy. The results of this study showed, for the first time, the differential response of two performant callus cultures to low-dose gamma irradiation, a biotechnological method that can be used to stimulate the synthesis of important flavonoids and triterpenes.
