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Melatonin Rich Plants: Production, Significance in Agriculture and Human Health

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Production of Biomass and Bioactive Compounds Using Bioreactor Technology

Abstract

Melatonin (N-acetyl-5-methoxytryptamine) has many therapeutic benefits for humans such as regulation of sleep cycle, aging, depression, and cancer. Melatonin was first discovered in fruits and vegetables in the mid-1990s. Since then, Melatonin has been recognized in large number of species including medicinal plants such as St. John’s wort, feverfew and Echinacea. The melatonin content varies from plant to plant due to genetic and environmental factors; therefore there is a need to have integrated system (such as bioreactors) for large-scale propagation of the high melatonin containing elite plant germplasm under controlled environmental conditions. Recently, major advances have been made to understand the melatonin biosynthetic pathway in plants. Melatonin performs important roles in plants working as a growth regulator as well as environmental stress protector. The enhancement of endogenous melatonin levels in plants is beneficial in both agriculture as well as in human health.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Gosling Research Institute for Plant Preservation (GRIPP), Department of Plant Agriculture, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, N1G 2W1, Canada

    Vikramjit Bajwa & Praveen K. Saxena

  2. Department of Chemistry, University of British Columbia, Kelowna, BC, V1V 1V7, Canada

    Susan J. Murch

Authors
  1. Vikramjit Bajwa
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  2. Susan J. Murch
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  3. Praveen K. Saxena
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Correspondence to Praveen K. Saxena .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Horticultural Science, Chungbuk National University, Cheongju, Korea, Republic of (South Korea)

    Kee-Yoeup Paek

  2. Department of Botany, Karnatak University, Dharwad, India

    Hosakatte Niranjana Murthy

  3. School of Life Science and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China

    Jian-Jiang Zhong

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Bajwa, V., Murch, S.J., Saxena, P.K. (2014). Melatonin Rich Plants: Production, Significance in Agriculture and Human Health. In: Paek, KY., Murthy, H., Zhong, JJ. (eds) Production of Biomass and Bioactive Compounds Using Bioreactor Technology. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-9223-3_19

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