Advances in plant regeneration and transformation technology for Panax ginseng CA Meyer

초록

Ginseng, that is, Korean ginseng is, of special interest because of its high value as a mysterious cure-all oriental medicine for the treatment of several diseases including anemia, insomnia, menopause, headache, dizziness, diabetes, stress, skin ailments, and blood circulation (Kosofsay, 1995; Lee er al., 1995). Biochemical and pharmacological analysis of ginseng, has been made possible to a great degree. The positive effects of Korean red ginseng on the improvement of working memory of mice and male sexual function as measured in penile rigidity and tumescence were reported (Kim et., 1996; Jin et al., 1996). Compared to other plant species, however, not many cultivars of ginseng have been bred due to long periods of flowering (3 years) and maturation (5-7 years) in the field and many difficulties in cultivation. Thus, the price of ginseng in the market is almost as high as computer chips. As one alternative way, genetic improvement of ginseng can be possible by genetic manipulation techniques such as direct gene transfer, protoplast fusion, and vector-mediated transformation system. An efficient regeneration of ginseng plants from in vitro culture is a major prerequisite for the successful application of these technique. Here we report our resent results on the plant regeneration system via organogenesis ( Lim et al., 1997) and somatic embryogenesis (Lim and Eriksson, 1995c), the improvement in plant regeneration from protoplast culture (Lim and Eriksson, 1995a), acclimatization (Lim et al., 1995d), and the high efficiency genetic transformation system via vaccum treatment and liquid culture system (Lim and Eriksson, 1995b).

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