Published:Journal of Chromatographic Science,
ISSN 0021-9665 Volume
46, Number 4, April 2008, pp. 362-368
Prospecting for Camptothecines from Nothapodytes
nimmoniana in the Western Ghats, South India: Identification
of High-Yielding Sources of Camptothecin and New Families of
Camptothecines
B.T. Ramesha1,2, T. Amna3,
G. Ravikanthdup2,4,
Rajesh P. Gunaga5, R. Vasudeva4,5, K.N.
Ganeshaiah2,4,6,7, R.
Uma Shaanker1,2,4,7, R.K. Khajuria3, S.C.
Puri3, and G.N. Qazi3 1Department of Crop Physiology, University of Agricultural Sciences,
GKVK Campus, Bangalore 560065, India; 2School of Ecology and
Conservation, University of Agricultural Sciences, GKVK Campus,
Bangalore 560065, India; 3Natural Products Chemistry Division,
Regional Research Laboratory, Jammu; 4Ashoka Trust for Research
in Ecology and the Environment, #659, 5th A Main, Hebbal, Bangalore
560024, India; 5Department of Forest Biology, College of Forestry,
Sirsi 581401,India; 6Department of Genetics and Plant Breeding,
University of Agricultural Sciences, GKVK Campus, Bangalore 560065,
India; and 7Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research,
Jakkur, Bangalore 560 065, India.
Camptothecin (CPT), a monoterpene alkaloid, is
an important anti-cancer compound obtained from several plant
sources including Camptotheca acuminta (from China) and Nothapodytes
nimmoniana (from India). Currently, by far the highest levels
of CPT (approximately 0.3% w/w) are reported from Nothapodytes
nimmoniana, a small tree distributed in the Western Ghats, India.
In recent years because of the heavy demand, there has been a
serious threat of extinction of the populations of the tree in
the Western Ghats forest of south India. Several studies have
chemically profiled populations of the species in the Western
Ghats to identify sources of high yield and therefore to enable
the sustainable production and harvesting of CPT. In this study,
using both high-performance liquid chromatography and liquid
chromatography–mass spectrometry, we report for the first
time the identification of trees that produce at least 5- to
8-fold more CPT than hitherto reported. Furthermore, we show
for the first time the production of a few minor camptothecines,
including 10-hydroxy camptothecin, in the stem and root bark
extracts of the tree. These results have important implications
for not only harnessing the high-yielding individuals for clonal
multiplication but also for exploiting some of the minor camptothecines,
which also have been shown to have important anti-cancer and
anti-viral activity.
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