Vincristine and vinblastine are two important anticancerous alkaloids present in Catharanthus roseus. Isolation of these compounds from in vivo grown plants is impeded by low productivity, is therefore very expensive. Biotechnological methodologies have recently been employed in improving the yield. In this monograph, somatic embryogenesis - an important biotechnology based technique has been described as to enrich alkaloid levels in C. roseus. Biomass production by optimizing embryo proliferation, maturation and large scale plantlets development has been discussed. The influence of cultural conditions and other controlling factor's role has been evaluated. The monograph discusses the applications of overproducing mutant cell lines after successful in vitro mutagenesis. The augmentation possibility of cell biomass by employing large scale fermenter/ bioreactor has also been suggested for commercial applications. The established protocol may offer an ideal opportunity in developing Catharanthus transgenics enmasse.

The increasing industrialization and modernization of the world has to a steep rise for the demand of petroleum products. Economic development in developing countries has led to huge increase in the energy demand. In India, the energy demand is increasing at a rate of 6.5% per annum. The crude oil demand of the country is met by import of about 80%. Thus the energy security has become a key issue for the nation as a whole. Petroleum based fuels are limited. The finite reserves are highly concentrated in certain regions of the world. Therefore, those countries not having these reserves are facing foreign exchange crises, mainly due to the import of crude oil. Hence it is necessary to look forward for alternative fuels, which can be produced from feedstocks available within the country.