Bioconversion of hydroquinone to arbutin in F3K Digitalis purpurea cell line

The capacity of the F3K Digitalis purpurea cell line to biotransform hydroquinone into β-arbutin was tested. The experimental protocol involved the sequential addition of hydroquinone to the culture medium, and testing different precursor (4-, 5-, and 6 mM) and sucrose concentrations (3 % and 6 %) under different lighting conditions (16-hour photoperiod and darkness). The biotransformation process was positively influenced by the photoperiod regime and increased sucrose concentration. The highest arbutin production (1 g/L) has been achieved in cell suspensions fed with 6% sucrose and 5 mM hydroquinone, under 16 hours daily light exposure.