Biological and phylogenetic advancements of Gaultheria fragrantissima: Economically important oil bearing medicinal plant

• Gaultheria fragrantissima is an endangered aromatic plants, known for its, ‘winter green oil’.
• The species is important as it contain highest amount of salicylic acid.
• Works related to micropropagation, genetic diversity have been described.
• Possible measures for conservation and sustainable development have been described.

Gaultheria (Ericaceae), a perennial woody genus, comprises of approximately 200 species, is distributed in the temperate and tropical regions of the world. Although majority of them are diploids with basic chromosome number of n = 11, some species are tetraploid or hexaploid. The genus is known for Gaultheria procumbens and Gaultheria fragrantissima for the production of “oil of wintergreen” which is used for antimicrobial, insecticidal, and antioxidant properties, and hence these two species have been investigated relatively more than other species. Most importantly, the plants of this genus contain higher levels of salicylic acid within the plant kingdom. Only limited information is available on biotechnological aspects; other investigations have however, concentrated on identification and quantification of chemical compounds from the genus at the species level, or to evaluate their pharmacological activities. Being vulnerable and economically important due to rich source of natural salicylic acid, G. fragrantissima (Wall.) has drawn much attention in the recent times, and hence there is an urgent need for biotechnological interventions not only for its conservation but also for bioprospecting its genome resources. Studies on phytochemical and pharmacological characteristics have been recently reviewed, therefore in this communication, an attempt has been made to depict the recent advances in various biotechnological aspects aimed for the conservation and varietal improvement of G. fragrantissima.