Monoclonal culture of Erva-de-bicho (Polygonum acre H.B.K. var. aquatile} for commercial scale production of a phyto-therapeutic medicine

Abstract

The aim of this work, as one of the greatest problems that the industry has to deal with is the absence of homogeniety among different batches of materials acquired for production of phyto-medicines. Heterogeniety comes from plant characteristics found among different raw material suppliers. There are differences in size, color, and chemical composition of medicinal substances due to both genetic and environmental factors. In order to avoid this problem, the technique of cloned micro-propagation of plants was employed to obtain shoots of erva-de-bicho in sufficient quantity to permit production in an industrial scale. Polygon acre plants were purchased from a supplier in a popular market, identified by a botany expert, then deposited in the Herbarium of Inst, of Biology at UFRJ. The plants were decontaminated, their nodal segments removed and introduced into Murashige & Skoog (MS) medium. Three clones from the resulting shoots were micro-propagated in MS medium without growth regulators under a photo-period of 16hrs at intensity of 23 (m^-2s^-1) and at 25±2°C. Dunng the process of acclimatization, the micro-propagated plants were transferred into inoculated seed plots in isopor containers and kept in a green house for 30 days, with frequent sprinkling with filtered and UV- sterilized water. At the end of 30 days, the plants were transferred to soil, with spacing of 40x40cm. When in soil, the plants developed an average of 14.2 new shoots at their base, to a total of 1194 shoots, with more than 2.0m each after 6 months. The plants were then harvested, at early morning, washed and dned in the shade, within textured walls and on textured shelves. Thick layers were avoided to prevent fungi growth. The process yielded 120kg of dry matenal. The aerial parts were crushed and ground, and used to prepare hydro-alcoholic extracts to be put into a topic medicine of anhydrous base. This method, together with controlled field conditions during cultivation, permitted genetic uniformity of batches of phyto-therapeutic medicines.