Evaluation of tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L. cv. Petit Havana SR1) hairy roots for the production of geraniol, the first committed step in terpenoid indole alkaloid pathway.

•Tobacco hairy roots were engineered to express geraniol synthase.•A detailed metabolite analysis of transgenic hairy root cultures was performed.•Generated hairy roots contained geraniol derivatives in six major glycoside forms.•Total geraniol accumulation was as high as 204.3μg/g DW in engineered hairy roots.•A scale-up to a 20L wave bioreactor was developed containing mg amounts of geraniol.