Abstract
Cell cultures of Commiphora wightii (Arnott.) Bhandari were grown in shake flasks and a bioreactor and an increase in guggulsterone accumulation up to $18{\mu}g\;l^{-1}$ was recorded in cells grown in the production medium containing a combination of sucrose:glucose (4% total), precursors (phenylalanine, pyruvic acid, xylose, and sodium acetate), morphactin, and 2iP. A yield of $10g\;l^{-1}$ biomass and ${\sim}200{\mu}g\;l^{-1}$ guggulsterone was recorded in a 3-l flask and in a 2-l stirred tank bioreactor compared with 6.6 g biomass and $67{\mu}g\;l^{-1}$ guggulsterone in 250-ml flasks. Increased vessel size was correlated with increased biomass and guggulsterone accumulation. 2iP alone was not effective for biomass and guggulsterone accumulation in cell cultures of C. wightii.