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In Vitro Culture of Lichen Partners: Need and Implications

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Recent Advances in Lichenology

Abstract

In the world, lichens are slowest growing symbiotic organism associations between fungi and a photosynthetic alga and/or cyanobacteria. Lichens produce a wide array of secondary metabolites which are unique and forms under lichenized conditions. Secondary metabolites of lichens demonstrated significant inhibition of various biological activities at very low concentrations. Although lichens are reservoir for various biologically active compounds, only few lichens and their compounds have been tested for their biological significance and still there are many more yet to be tested. Hence, there is clearly an urgent need for expanding research in this area including in-depth studies of those compounds which have shown promising results. A strong focus is also needed on the most promising lichen-based drug therapies followed by large scale production of the best of those compounds. One of the main issues related to the limited use of lichen compounds in modern medicine is the slow growth rate of lichen thalli which remains as a challenge to enhance their biomass with in vitro culture. Advance research in the field of cultivating lichens and their symbionts will enable the mass production of lichen substances and their pharmaceutical applications. The present review on tissue culture of lichens of various groups, biosynthesis of their unique secondary compounds, physiological conditions required for their synthesis, and biological activities will significantly contribute to the present knowledge in the field of experimental lichenology and will also attract the attention of industry/society/nation as a whole.

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Acknowledgments

We are gratefully acknowledge the various financial supports by the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Govt. of India, New Delhi [Grant no. BT/PR3133/BCE/08/237/2002; BT/PR8551/NDB/52/15/2006], Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), Govt. of India, New Delhi [Grant no. 09/670(034)/2006-EMR-I; 09/670(0046)2010/EMR-I] and Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB), Govt. of India, New Delhi [Grant No. SR/FT/LS-170/2009]. We are also thankful to Director, Agharkar Research Institute, Pune for research facilities provided.

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  1. Mycology and Plant Pathology Group, Plant Science Division, Agharkar Research Institute, G.G. Agarkar Road, Pune, 411004, India

    Neeraj Verma & Bhaskar C. Behera

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  1. Neeraj Verma
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  2. Bhaskar C. Behera
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Correspondence to Neeraj Verma .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Lichenology Laboratory, CSIR-National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India

    Dalip Kumar Upreti

  2. Departmento de Biologia Vegetal II Facultad de Farmacia, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Madrid, Spain

    Pradeep K. Divakar

  3. Lichenology Laboratory, CSIR-National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India

    Vertika Shukla

  4. Lichenology Laboratory, CSIR-National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India

    Rajesh Bajpai

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Verma, N., Behera, B.C. (2015). In Vitro Culture of Lichen Partners: Need and Implications. In: Upreti, D., Divakar, P., Shukla, V., Bajpai, R. (eds) Recent Advances in Lichenology. Springer, New Delhi. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-81-322-2235-4_8

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