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Shoji T, Hashimoto T, Saito K. Genetic regulation and manipulation of nicotine biosynthesis in tobacco: strategies to eliminate addictive alkaloids. JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL BOTANY 2024; 75:1741-1753. [PMID: 37647764 PMCID: PMC10938045 DOI: 10.1093/jxb/erad341] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/07/2023] [Accepted: 08/28/2023] [Indexed: 09/01/2023]
Abstract
Tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L.) is a widely cultivated crop of the genus Nicotiana. Due to the highly addictive nature of tobacco products, tobacco smoking remains the leading cause of preventable death and disease. There is therefore a critical need to develop tobacco varieties with reduced or non-addictive nicotine levels. Nicotine and related pyridine alkaloids biosynthesized in the roots of tobacco plants are transported to the leaves, where they are stored in vacuoles as a defense against predators. Jasmonate, a defense-related plant hormone, plays a crucial signaling role in activating transcriptional regulators that coordinate the expression of downstream metabolic and transport genes involved in nicotine production. In recent years, substantial progress has been made in molecular and genomics research, revealing many metabolic and regulatory genes involved in nicotine biosynthesis. These advances have enabled us to develop tobacco plants with low or ultra-low nicotine levels through various methodologies, such as mutational breeding, genetic engineering, and genome editing. We review the recent progress on genetic manipulation of nicotine production in tobacco, which serves as an excellent example of plant metabolic engineering with profound social implications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tsubasa Shoji
- Instutute of Natural Medicine, University of Toyama, Sugitani, Toyama, Toyama 930-0194, Japan
- RIKEN Center for Sustainable Resource Science, Tsurumi-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa 230-0045, Japan
| | - Takashi Hashimoto
- Nara Institute of Science and Technology, Ikoma, Nara 630-0192, Japan
| | - Kazuki Saito
- RIKEN Center for Sustainable Resource Science, Tsurumi-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa 230-0045, Japan
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Shoji T, Sugawara S, Mori T, Kobayashi M, Kusano M, Saito K. Induced production of specialized steroids by transcriptional reprogramming in Petunia hybrida. PNAS NEXUS 2023; 2:pgad326. [PMID: 37920550 PMCID: PMC10619512 DOI: 10.1093/pnasnexus/pgad326] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2023] [Accepted: 09/25/2023] [Indexed: 11/04/2023]
Abstract
Plants produce specialized metabolites with defensive properties that are often synthesized through the coordinated regulation of metabolic genes by transcription factors in various biological contexts. In this study, we investigated the regulatory function of the transcription factor PhERF1 from petunia (Petunia hybrida), which belongs to a small group of ETHYLENE RESPONSE FACTOR (ERF) family members that regulate the biosynthesis of bioactive alkaloids and terpenoids in various plant lineages. We examined the effects of transiently overexpressing PhERF1 in petunia leaves on the transcriptome and metabolome, demonstrating the production of a class of specialized steroids, petuniolides, and petuniasterones in these leaves. We also observed the activation of many metabolic genes, including those involved in sterol biosynthesis, as well as clustered genes that encode new metabolic enzymes, such as cytochrome P450 oxidoreductases, 2-oxoglutarate-dependent dioxygenases, and BAHD acyltransferases. Furthermore, we determined that PhERF1 transcriptionally induces downstream metabolic genes by recognizing specific cis-regulatory elements in their promoters. This study highlights the potential of evolutionarily conserved transcriptional regulators to induce the production of specialized products through transcriptional reprogramming.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tsubasa Shoji
- RIKEN Center for Sustainable Resource Science, Yokohama, Kanagawa 230-0045, Japan
- Institute of Natural Medicine, University of Toyama, Toyama, Toyama 930-0194, Japan
| | - Satoko Sugawara
- RIKEN Center for Sustainable Resource Science, Yokohama, Kanagawa 230-0045, Japan
| | - Tetsuya Mori
- RIKEN Center for Sustainable Resource Science, Yokohama, Kanagawa 230-0045, Japan
| | - Makoto Kobayashi
- RIKEN Center for Sustainable Resource Science, Yokohama, Kanagawa 230-0045, Japan
| | - Miyako Kusano
- RIKEN Center for Sustainable Resource Science, Yokohama, Kanagawa 230-0045, Japan
- Graduate School of Life and Environmental Science, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8572, Japan
- Tsukuba-Plant Innovation Research Center (T-PIRC), University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8572, Japan
| | - Kazuki Saito
- RIKEN Center for Sustainable Resource Science, Yokohama, Kanagawa 230-0045, Japan
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Pisias MT, Bakala HS, McAlvay AC, Mabry ME, Birchler JA, Yang B, Pires JC. Prospects of Feral Crop De Novo Redomestication. PLANT & CELL PHYSIOLOGY 2022; 63:1641-1653. [PMID: 35639623 DOI: 10.1093/pcp/pcac072] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2022] [Revised: 05/13/2022] [Accepted: 05/25/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Modern agriculture depends on a narrow variety of crop species, leaving global food and nutritional security highly vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change and population expansion. Crop improvement using conventional and molecular breeding approaches leveraging plant genetic diversity using crop wild relatives (CWRs) has been one approach to address these issues. However, the rapid pace of the global change requires additional innovative solutions to adapt agriculture to meet global needs. Neodomestication-the rapid and targeted introduction of domestication traits using introgression or genome editing of CWRs-is being explored as a supplementary approach. These methods show promise; however, they have so far been limited in efficiency and applicability. We propose expanding the scope of neodomestication beyond truly wild CWRs to include feral crops as a source of genetic diversity for novel crop development, in this case 'redomestication'. Feral crops are plants that have escaped cultivation and evolved independently, typically adapting to their local environments. Thus, feral crops potentially contain valuable adaptive features while retaining some domestication traits. Due to their genetic proximity to crop species, feral crops may be easier targets for de novo domestication (i.e. neodomestication via genome editing techniques). In this review, we explore the potential of de novo redomestication as an application for novel crop development by genome editing of feral crops. This approach to efficiently exploit plant genetic diversity would access an underutilized reservoir of genetic diversity that could prove important in support of global food insecurity in the face of the climate change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael T Pisias
- Division of Plant Sciences, Bond Life Sciences Center, University of Missouri, 1201 Rollins Street, Columbia, MO 65211, USA
| | - Harmeet Singh Bakala
- Division of Plant Sciences, Bond Life Sciences Center, University of Missouri, 1201 Rollins Street, Columbia, MO 65211, USA
| | - Alex C McAlvay
- Institute of Economic Botany, New York Botanical Garden, 2900 Southern Boulevard, Bronx, NY 10458, USA
| | - Makenzie E Mabry
- Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida, 1659 Museum Road, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA
| | - James A Birchler
- Division of Biological Sciences, University of Missouri, Tucker Hall, Columbia, MO 65211, USA
| | - Bing Yang
- Division of Plant Sciences, Bond Life Sciences Center, University of Missouri, 1201 Rollins Street, Columbia, MO 65211, USA
- Donald Danforth Plant Science Center, 975 N Warson Road, St. Louis, MO 63132, USA
| | - J Chris Pires
- Division of Biological Sciences, University of Missouri, Tucker Hall, Columbia, MO 65211, USA
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Shoji T, Moriyama K, Sierro N, Ouadi S, Ivanov NV, Hashimoto T, Saito K. Natural and induced variations in transcriptional regulator genes result in low-nicotine phenotypes in tobacco. THE PLANT JOURNAL : FOR CELL AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 2022; 111:1768-1779. [PMID: 35883194 PMCID: PMC9544004 DOI: 10.1111/tpj.15923] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2022] [Revised: 07/12/2022] [Accepted: 07/18/2022] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
In tobacco, the homologous ETHYLENE RESPONSE FACTOR (ERF) transcription factors ERF199 and ERF189 coordinate the transcription of multiple metabolic genes involved in nicotine biosynthesis. Natural alleles at the NIC1 and NIC2 loci greatly affect alkaloid accumulation and overlap with ERF199 and ERF189 in the tobacco genome, respectively. In this study, we identified several low-nicotine tobacco varieties lacking ERF199 or ERF189 from a tobacco germplasm collection. We characterized the sequence of these new nic1 and nic2 alleles, as well as the previously defined alleles nic1-1 and nic2-1. Moreover, we examined the influence of different nic alleles on alkaloid contents and expression levels of genes related to nicotine biosynthesis. We also demonstrated that the deletion of a distal genomic region attenuates ERF199 expression, resulting in a moderately negative effect on the alkaloid phenotype. Our study provides new insights into the regulation of nicotine biosynthesis and novel genetic resources to breed low-nicotine tobacco.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tsubasa Shoji
- RIKEN Center for Sustainable Resource Science, Tsurumi‐kuYokohamaKanagawa230‐0045Japan
- Division of Biological ScienceNara Institute of Science and TechnologyIkomaNara630‐0101Japan
| | - Koki Moriyama
- Division of Biological ScienceNara Institute of Science and TechnologyIkomaNara630‐0101Japan
| | - Nicolas Sierro
- PMI R&D, Philip Morris Products S.A.Quai Jeanrenaud 5CH‐2000NeuchâtelSwitzerland
| | - Sonia Ouadi
- PMI R&D, Philip Morris Products S.A.Quai Jeanrenaud 5CH‐2000NeuchâtelSwitzerland
| | - Nikolai V. Ivanov
- PMI R&D, Philip Morris Products S.A.Quai Jeanrenaud 5CH‐2000NeuchâtelSwitzerland
| | - Takashi Hashimoto
- Division of Biological ScienceNara Institute of Science and TechnologyIkomaNara630‐0101Japan
| | - Kazuki Saito
- RIKEN Center for Sustainable Resource Science, Tsurumi‐kuYokohamaKanagawa230‐0045Japan
- Plant Molecular Science CenterChiba University, Chuo‐kuChiba260‐8675Japan
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Koo AJ, Arimura GI. Molecular biology of chemical defenses. PLANT MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 2022; 109:351-353. [PMID: 35727520 DOI: 10.1007/s11103-022-01290-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
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Li J, Liu S, Chen P, Cai J, Tang S, Yang W, Cao F, Zheng P, Sun B. Systematic Analysis of the R2R3-MYB Family in Camellia sinensis: Evidence for Galloylated Catechins Biosynthesis Regulation. FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2021; 12:782220. [PMID: 35046974 PMCID: PMC8762170 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2021.782220] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/24/2021] [Accepted: 11/15/2021] [Indexed: 05/08/2023]
Abstract
The R2R3-MYB transcription factor (TF) family regulates metabolism of phenylpropanoids in various plant lineages. Species-expanded or specific MYB TFs may regulate species-specific metabolite biosynthesis including phenylpropanoid-derived bioactive products. Camellia sinensis produces an abundance of specialized metabolites, which makes it an excellent model for digging into the genetic regulation of plant-specific metabolite biosynthesis. The most abundant health-promoting metabolites in tea are galloylated catechins, and the most bioactive of the galloylated catechins, epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), is specifically relative abundant in C. sinensis. However, the transcriptional regulation of galloylated catechin biosynthesis remains elusive. This study mined the R2R3-MYB TFs associated with galloylated catechin biosynthesis in C. sinensis. A total of 118 R2R3-MYB proteins, classified into 38 subgroups, were identified. R2R3-MYB subgroups specific to or expanded in C. sinensis were hypothesized to be essential to evolutionary diversification of tea-specialized metabolites. Notably, nine of these R2R3-MYB genes were expressed preferentially in apical buds (ABs) and young leaves, exactly where galloylated catechins accumulate. Three putative R2R3-MYB genes displayed strong correlation with key galloylated catechin biosynthesis genes, suggesting a role in regulating biosynthesis of epicatechin gallate (ECG) and EGCG. Overall, this study paves the way to reveal the transcriptional regulation of galloylated catechins in C. sinensis.
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