Institut für die Sicherheit biotechnologischer Verfahren bei Pflanzen
The project "New medicinal plants and active ingredients from Saxony-Anhalt (NA-WIR)" aims to establish new medicinal plants in the region and to integrate several new value chains from primary plant products to bioactive substances. With the cultivation of rosemary, sage and the Chinese bush nettle, drought-resistant species are finding their way into the cultivation area of Saxony-Anhalt. Above all, the strengths in plant breeding, cultivation and plant biochemistry in Saxony-Anhalt will play a decisive role. Selected varieties are to be checked for suitability and then established in cultivation. The resulting primary plant products, such as spices, tea or essential oils, are to be marketed. In order to generate higher added value in the long term, diterpenoids (specialized natural substances) will play a central role in this project. Ingredients such as carnosic acid (rosemary, sage) and oridonine (Chinese nettle) have a variety of bioactive properties and can be isolated from the plants in high concentrations. Through biotransformation, the substances obtained are to be converted into higher-quality active ingredients and tested for antibacterial and anti-carcinogenic properties. The main focus is on the age-related diseases periodontitis and cancer. In addition, the new value chains established in the project are to be subjected to a sustainability and market transfer analysis and the socio-economic effects of the developments induced by the project are to be determined. "NA-WIR" also offers the possibility of using machine learning methods and practical spectroscopic analyzes to predict the modeling of the relevant ingredients for an optimal yield. Digital data collection and modern FAIR data management allow project partners and stakeholders access to information about plants and analyzes of their ingredients. The approaches developed in this project can be used in the future as a blueprint for projects with the aim of establishing new or optimized value chains for local special cultures or for special cultures to be resettled in Saxony-Anhalt.JKI-SB will check the local cultivation characteristics of several accessions of rosemary, sage and Chinese bush nettle, record agronomic parameters and provide close-meshed plant material from these trials over several cultivation periods for the measurement of constituents and the testing of effects of constituents. Furthermore, approx. 100 different species of labiates will be procured and grown; partial sequencing will be carried out on this material to screen for new enzyme variants for the purpose of biotransformation of valuable ingredients.JKI-SB will check the local cultivation suitability of several accessions of rosemary, sage and Chinese bush nettle, record agronomic parameters and provide close-meshed plant material from these trials over several cultivation periods for measuring the ingredients and testing the effects of the ingredients. Furthermore, about 100 different species of labiates will be procured and grown; partial sequencing will be performed on this material to screen for new enzyme variants for the purpose of biotransformation of valuable constituents.
Federal Ministry of Education and Research
