A wide variety of elicitors has been employed to alter cell metabolism in order to enhance the production of secondary metabolism in plant cell cultures. In the present study, organic germanium, a dietary supplement, was used as an elicitor to enhance the biomass accumulation and ginsenoside production. Adventitious root cultures of ginseng were supplemented with organic germanium at 0, 10, 30, 60, 90, 120 or 150 mg 1(-1) concentrations. Cultures supplemented with 60 mg F 1 organic germanium enhanced both fresh (565 +/- 6 g) and dry (44 +/- 2 g) biomass accumulations of adventitious roots and accumulation of Rb and Rg group of ginsenosides. This is the first report on organic germanium as an elicitor for ginsenoside accumulation in plant cell cultures. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.