Basic Introduction to Biosynthetic pathway:

Biosynthesis: Formation of a chemical Biogenesis: Production or generation of

compound by a living organism. living organisms from other living
organisms.

 The living plants may be considered as a biosynthetic laboratory not

only for primary metabolites but also for a multitude of secondary
metabolites.
 Raw material used by plant for initiation of biosynthesis, water from
soil and CO2 from atmosphere undergoes photosynthesis in presence
of light.

6 CO2 + 6 H2O C6H12O6 + 6O2

 Reaction involve in photosynthesis is:

• Light reaction or Hill reaction: utilize light energy
and concerned with the libration of oxygen and
production of some reducing agent.
• Dark reaction or Blackman reaction: utilize the
energy from light reaction to fix CO2 into sugar.
 Glucose is an intermediate product of photosynthesis and is the
starting material from which complex food formed.
 Complex form of glucose are starch , a portion of which converted
into oils and a part is employed together with nitrogen, sulphur,
phosphorus and other minerals form protein and complex organic
compound.
 Plant produce these compounds through various vital biosynthetic
process:
• Glycolysis and Krebs cycle helpful in production
of secondary metabolites.
• Pentose phosphate pathway for sugar.
• Acetate-Mevalonate pathway for terpenoid and
cardiac glycoside.
• Shikimic acid pathway for cynogenetic glycoside,
alkaloid and aromatic amino acid.

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  Metabolic product and intermediate form during biosynthesis is
controlled by various enzymes.

 Types of Metabolite :

• Primary metabolite: primary metabolites are required for general

growth and physiological activity of plants because of their basic
metabolism. E.g. amino acid, fatty acid, nucleic acid, carbohydrate,
protein.
• Secondary metabolite: Secondary metabolites are derived
biosynthetically from the primary metabolites but usually restricted to
specific taxonomical group. They may represent chemical adaptations
to environmental stresses or they may serves as defensive or
protective against microorganism, insect and higher herbivorous
predator. E.g. alkaloid, glycoside, volatile oil, flavonoid, lignan,
carotenoid etc.
 Other reaction involve to complete biosynthesis:

• Oxidation
• Reduction
• condensation
• Amination
• Methylation
• Cyclization etc.

Precursor for Alkaloid biosynthesis:

 Lysine: Piperidine and Quinazoline

 Ornithine: pyrrolizidine
 Tyrosine: isoquinoline
 Tryptophan: Indole
 Phenyl alanine: Ephedrine, mescaline
 Dihydroxyphenyl alanine: Emetine and Colchicine

ORIGIN OF SOME SECONDARY METABOLITE

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TECHANIQUES USED FOR INVESTIGATION OF BIOSYNTHETIC
PATHWAYS

 Tracer techniques
 Use of Isolated organs or Tissues
 Grafting method
 Use of mutant strains
 Enzymatic studies

1. TRACER TECHANIQUES:

o A technique which utilizes a labeled compound to trace or find out the

different intermediates and various steps involved in biosynthetic
process in plant at given rate and given time.
o When these labeled compounds are administered into the plants, they
become a part of general metabolic pool and undergo reactions
characteristic to the metabolism of that particular plant.

SIGNIFICANCE OF TRACER TECHANIQUES

o Tracing of biosynthetic pathway by incorporating radioactive

isotopes into the precursor or starting material. E.g. By
incorporation of C14 to phenylalanine, the biosynthesis of
cynogenetic glycoside, prunacin can be traced.
o Location and quantity of the compound can be determined in
biological system.
o Different trace element for different studies:
 For studies on Protein, alkaloid and amino acid: nitrogen
atom gives more specific information than carbon atom.
 For studies on glycosidic linkage: O, N, S, and C atom.
 For studies on Terpenoids: O-atom

BASIC STEPS INVOLVED IN TRACER TECHANIQUES:

 Preparation of labeled compound
 Incorporation of labeled compound to tissue system
 Separation or isolation of labeled compound from tissue system
 Determination of nature of metabolites in various biochemical fraction

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PREPARATION OF LABELED COMPOUND:

The labeled compounds may be prepared by use of radioactive isotopes and

stable isotopes.
Radioactive isotopes: C14, H3, S35, P32, I131,Co60
Stable isotopes: H2, C13, N15, O18

Properties of some radioactive isotopes:

Natural Radioactive Radiation Half life

C12 C14 beta 5760 yrs
H1 H3 beta 12.5 yrs
S32 S35 beta 871 days
P31 P32 beta 14.3 days
Cl35 Cl36 beta 4.4 × 105yrs
I127 I131 Beta, Gamma 8 days
Co59 Co60 Beta, Gamma 5.3 days

Criteria for selection of trace element:

• The starting concentration of trace element must be sufficient enough
to withstand dilution in the course of metabolism
• For proper labeling the physical and chemical nature of the compound
must be known.
• Half life of the tracer isotope should be sufficiently long.
• The labeled compound should not be damage the Tissue system

In biological investigations, the use of radioactive isotopes enables the

metabolism of compounds to be followed in living organism for detection
and estimation of soft and easily absorbed radiation from labeled compound.
The instrument of choice to detect the properties of metabolite is
scintillation counter, GM-counter, Ionization chamber, Mass spectroscopy,
NMR etc.
E.g. growing chlorella in an atmosphere containing 14CO2.

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  Tritium labeling is effected by catalytic exchange (Pt catalyst) in
aqueous media by hydrogenation of unsaturated compounds with
tritium gas.

INTRODUCTION OF LABELED COMPOUND TO TISSUE

SYSTEM:
There are six methods use to incorporate labeled compound to tissue system:
 Root feeding
 Stem feeding
 Direct injection
 Infiltration
 Floating method
 Spraying technique

ROOT FEEDING:

The plant in which roots are the biosynthetic sites, this method is preferred.
E.g.Tobacco
In this type of experiment the plant are cultivated hydroponically to avoid
microbial contamination.

STEM FEEDING: Presence of root don’t require for biosynthesis.

In this method substrate can be administered through the cut ends of stem
immersed in a solution. For Latex containing plant this method is not
suitable.

DIRECT IJECTION:
This method is applicable to the plant with hollow stem. E.g. Umbelliferae
and capsule bearing plant (opium poppy)

INFILTERATION: Wick feeding

When it is desired to carryout feeding on plant rooted in soil or other support

without disturbing the root, wick feeding is applicable.

FLOATING METHOD:

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When small amount of material is available, floating method is used. In this
method, leaf disc or chopped leaves are floating on the substrate solution.
This technique is also used in conjugation with vacuum infiltration to
remove gases.

SPRAY TECHNIQUE:

In this method compound have been absorbed after being sprayed on leaves
in aqueous solution. E.g. Steroids.

SEPARATION OR ISOLATION OF LABELED COMPOUND OR

METABOLITE:

Depending on the nature of drug and its source different method of

extraction is employed.
 Soft and fresh tissue: Infusion, maceration
 Hard tissue: Decoction and Hot percolation
 Unorganized drug: Maceration with adjustment
Choice of solvent for extraction:
 Fat and oil: non polar solvent
 Alkaloid, Glycoside, Flavonoid: slightly polar solvent
 Plant phenol: Polar solvent

• Fractional crystallization, Partition, column chromatography

also used as separation technique.

DETERMINATION OF NATURE OF METABOLITES:

Depending on nature of isotopes various instrumentation techniques is used

for determination of chemical nature of intermediate and final product.
For radioactive isotopes,
• GM-counter
• Scintillation or liquid scintillation counter
• Ionization chamber

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These entire instruments characterize the nature of radiation. Basically it
depends upon the conversion of kinetic energy of particle into fleeting pulse
of light as a result of its penetration into a suitable luminescent medium.
For stable isotopes,
• Mass spectroscopy- gives molecular peaks depending on mass/charge
ratio.
• NMR- gives nature of carbon and proton.
Methods in Tracer Techniques

Precursor- Product Sequence:

• For elucidation of biosynthetic pathways in plants by means of
labeled compounds, the precursor product sequence method is
used.
• In this method presumed precursor of the constituent is under
investigation in a labeled form is fed to plant and after a particular
time the constituent is isolated, purified and its radioactivity is
determined.
• This method is extensively applied to the biogenesis of morphine
and ergot alkaloid

Competitive feeding:

This method is normally used to determine two possible intermediates in the

plants.

A C

B1
Competitive feeding can distinguish whether B or B1 is the normal
intermediate in the formation of C from A.
E.g. Biosynthesis of Hemlock alkaloids (Coniine and conhydrine)

Sequential Analysis:

The principle of this method of investigation is to grow plants in the

atmosphere of 14CO2 and by analysis of plants at a given time intervals, to

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obtained the sequence in which various related compounds becomes labeled
from the results some biosynthetic route may be accepted and others
rejected.
• 14CO2 and sequential analysis has been very successfully used in the
elucidation of the path of carbon in photosynthesis.
• Determination of sequential formation of opium and tobacco
alkaloids.
2. USE OF ISOLATED CELL, TISSUE AND ORGAN:

• Isolated cells, tissues and organ grown on nutrient medium aseptically

are being utilized for the elucidation of biosynthetic pathways of
secondary metabolites.
• The plant tissue culture technique affords considerable potential in
investigation of biogenetic pathways as the material obtained is
uniform in every respect and is also available at all time.
• This cultured material is easily manageable and reproducible and
easier to feed with potential precursor of the secondary metabolites
under study.
• For analysis of products sample to be taken repeatedly and effects of
microbes on the precursor or its product is eliminated.

3. ENZYMATIC STUDIES:

Enzymatic studies involving the enzymes catalyzing the metabolic reactions,

which are also helpful in the investigation of biosynthetic pathways.
Enzymes can be isolated and studied. Two isomers of chorismate mutase
enzyme have been isolated from poppy seedling and characterize.

4. GRAFTING METHOD:

Grafted plant is especially use in finding the main site of primary as well as
secondary metabolite formation.
Grafting techniques have been useful in providing principle sites:
 For capsicin in developing capsicum plants
 Aerial plants parts of cannabis for resin
 Roots of nicotiana tobacum for nicotine
 Leaves ofnicotiana glauca for anabasine

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5. Mutant strand:

By selecting mutant strand, biosynthetic pathways studies are possible. To

produce a mutant strand physical or chemical methods are employed.

Physical: Radiation
Chemical: Colchicin.

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