INTEGRATED MOLECULAR STRATEGIES FOR ENHANCED PRODUCTION OF MEDICINAL PLANT-DERIVED ALKALOIDS (Book Chapter)

Abstract

Medicinal plants continue to be an important source of life-saving drugs for humankind. The secondary metabolites responsible for plant defense mechanisms through cytotoxic activity toward microbial pathogens have proved to be useful as antimicrobial medicines in humans. One such group of secondary metabolites is alkaloids; they are nitrogenous organic heterocyclic molecules that have pharmacological effects on humans and other animals. They are used as antihypertensives, sedatives, antitumor agents, anticholinergic drugs, anesthetics, psychoactive, analgesics, antispasmodics, and antibacterials, and are also used in treating neurodegenerative disorders and mood disorders. In plants, alkaloids are present only in small quantities. This chapter reviews the molecular strategies that can be employed to increase alkaloid production from medicinal plants.