Bioprocess considerations for production of secondary metabolites by plant cell suspension cultures

Plant cell culture provides a viable alternative over whole plant cultivation for the production of secondary metabolites. In order to successfully cultivate the plant cells at large scale, several engineering parameters such as, cell aggregation, mixing, aeration, and shear sensitivity are taken into account for selection of a suitable bioreactor. The media ingredients, their concentrations and the environmental factors are optimized for maximal synthesis of a desired metabolite. Increased productivity in a bioreactor can be achieved by selection of a proper cultivation strategy (batch, fed-batch, two-stage etc.), feeding of metabolic precursors and extraction of intracellular metabolites. Proper understanding and rigorous analysis of these parameters would pave the way towards the successful commercialization of plant cell bioprocesses.