Tuberoid Orchids: Micropropagation for Biomedical Applications

The article presents the developed protocol for the propagation of tuberous orchids and their organs. The protocol allows for the cultivation of materials for reintroduction, restoration of disturbed populations and biomedical research. A phytochemical analysis of this plant group was conducted for the first time, confirming their medicinal properties. Micropropagation was employed to achieve this objective. The study focused on nine species of tuberous orchids from the Orchidaceae family: Dactylorhiza traunsteineri, D. maculata, D. fuchsii, D. incarnata, D. urvilleana, D. baltica, Gymnadenia conopsea, G. conopsea f. gigantea and Orchis militaris. The results demonstrated that these species contain chemical substances with potential physiological activities. For example, squalene exhibited positive effects such as antifungal, anticancer, antibacterial, antioxidant, and others. Additionally, other identified chemical substances demonstrated antiproliferative and proapoptotic activities against colon cancer, as well as antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antitumoral, and antifungal properties.

Keywords: Biologically active substances, Culture medium, Dactylorhiza, Gymnadenia, In vitro, Micropropagation, Orchis, Orchid, Pyrolysis-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry, Secondary metabolites, Tissue culture, Tuberoid.