New medium composition for high betacyanin production by a cell suspension culture of table beet (Beta vulgaris L.).

The effect of a revised Linsmaier-Skoog (LS) medium on betacyanin production was investigated in suspension cultures of table beet (Beta vulgaris L.). The effects of a high iron concentration and low concentration of zinc on betacyanin production were not cumulative. The composition of the new revised medium for high betacyanin production was established by reducing the concentration of inorganic nitrogen (30 mM), modifying the ratio of ammonium to nitrate (1:14), reducing the concentration of zinc (0.0003 mM), and removing copper and cobalt. The revised LS medium enabled the maximum betacyanin yield of 550 mg/l to be obtained from a 14-day culture. This medium promoted the betacyanin production in three types of cell line differing in the betacyanin productivity. The betacyanin productivity (40 mg/l x day) was higher than that quoted in any other previous reports.