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Morelli L, Perez-Colao P, Reig-Lopez D, Di X, Llorente B, Rodriguez-Concepcion M. Boosting pro-vitamin A content and bioaccessibility in leaves by combining engineered biosynthesis and storage pathways with high-light treatments. THE PLANT JOURNAL : FOR CELL AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 2024. [PMID: 39121193 DOI: 10.1111/tpj.16964] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/09/2024] [Revised: 07/16/2024] [Accepted: 07/23/2024] [Indexed: 08/11/2024]
Abstract
Biofortification of green leafy vegetables with pro-vitamin A carotenoids, such as β-carotene, has remained challenging to date. Here, we combined two strategies to achieve this goal. One of them involves producing β-carotene in the cytosol of leaf cells to avoid the negative impacts on photosynthesis derived from changing the balance of carotenoids and chlorophylls in chloroplasts. The second approach involves the conversion of chloroplasts into non-photosynthetic, carotenoid-overaccumulating chromoplasts in leaves agroinfiltrated or infected with constructs encoding the bacterial phytoene synthase crtB, leaving other non-engineered leaves of the plant to sustain normal growth. A combination of these two strategies, referred to as strategy C (for cytosolic production) and strategy P (for plastid conversion mediated by crtB), resulted in a 5-fold increase in the amount of β-carotene in Nicotiana benthamiana leaves. Following several attempts to further improve β-carotene leaf contents by metabolic engineering, hormone treatments and genetic screenings, it was found that promoting the proliferation of plastoglobules with increased light-intensity treatments not only improved β-carotene accumulation but it also resulted in a much higher bioaccessibility. The combination of strategies C and P together with a more intense light treatment increased the levels of accessible β-carotene 30-fold compared to controls. We further demonstrated that stimulating plastoglobule proliferation with strategy P, but also with a higher-light treatment alone, also improved β-carotene contents and bioaccessibility in edible lettuce (Lactuca sativa) leaves.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luca Morelli
- Institute for Plant Molecular and Cell Biology (IBMCP), CSIC-Universitat Politècnica de València, Valencia, 46022, Spain
| | - Pablo Perez-Colao
- Institute for Plant Molecular and Cell Biology (IBMCP), CSIC-Universitat Politècnica de València, Valencia, 46022, Spain
| | - Diego Reig-Lopez
- Institute for Plant Molecular and Cell Biology (IBMCP), CSIC-Universitat Politècnica de València, Valencia, 46022, Spain
| | - Xueni Di
- Institute for Plant Molecular and Cell Biology (IBMCP), CSIC-Universitat Politècnica de València, Valencia, 46022, Spain
| | - Briardo Llorente
- ARC Center of Excellence in Synthetic Biology, Australian Genome Foundry, and School of Natural Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, New South Wales, 2109, Australia
| | - Manuel Rodriguez-Concepcion
- Institute for Plant Molecular and Cell Biology (IBMCP), CSIC-Universitat Politècnica de València, Valencia, 46022, Spain
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Naik B, Kumar V, Rizwanuddin S, Mishra S, Kumar V, Saris PEJ, Khanduri N, Kumar A, Pandey P, Gupta AK, Khan JM, Rustagi S. Biofortification as a solution for addressing nutrient deficiencies and malnutrition. Heliyon 2024; 10:e30595. [PMID: 38726166 PMCID: PMC11079288 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e30595] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2023] [Revised: 04/30/2024] [Accepted: 04/30/2024] [Indexed: 05/12/2024] Open
Abstract
Malnutrition, defined as both undernutrition and overnutrition, is a major global health concern affecting millions of people. One possible way to address nutrient deficiency and combat malnutrition is through biofortification. A comprehensive review of the literature was conducted to explore the current state of biofortification research, including techniques, applications, effectiveness and challenges. Biofortification is a promising strategy for enhancing the nutritional condition of at-risk populations. Biofortified varieties of basic crops, including rice, wheat, maize and beans, with elevated amounts of vital micronutrients, such as iron, zinc, vitamin A and vitamin C, have been successfully developed using conventional and advanced technologies. Additionally, the ability to specifically modify crop genomes to improve their nutritional profiles has been made possible by recent developments in genetic engineering, such as CRISPR-Cas9 technology. The health conditions of people have been shown to improve and nutrient deficiencies were reduced when biofortified crops were grown. Particularly in environments with limited resources, biofortification showed considerable promise as a long-term and economical solution to nutrient shortages and malnutrition. To fully exploit the potential of biofortified crops to enhance public health and global nutrition, issues such as consumer acceptance, regulatory permitting and production and distribution scaling up need to be resolved. Collaboration among governments, researchers, non-governmental organizations and the private sector is essential to overcome these challenges and promote the widespread adoption of biofortification as a key part of global food security and nutrition strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bindu Naik
- Department of Food Science and Technology, Graphic Era (Deemed to Be) University, Bell Road, Clement Town, Dehradun, 248002, Uttarakhand, India
- School of Agriculture, Graphic Hill University, Clement Town, Dehradun, Uttarakhand, India
| | - Vijay Kumar
- Himalayan School of Biosciences, Swami Rama Himalayan University, Swami Rama Nagar, Jolly Grant, Dehradun, 248016, Uttarakhand, India
| | - Sheikh Rizwanuddin
- Department of Food Science and Technology, Graphic Era (Deemed to Be) University, Bell Road, Clement Town, Dehradun, 248002, Uttarakhand, India
| | - Sadhna Mishra
- Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, GLA University, Mathura, India
| | - Vivek Kumar
- Himalayan School of Biosciences, Swami Rama Himalayan University, Swami Rama Nagar, Jolly Grant, Dehradun, 248016, Uttarakhand, India
| | - Per Erik Joakim Saris
- Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry, University of Helsinki, 00100, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Naresh Khanduri
- Himalayan School of Biosciences, Swami Rama Himalayan University, Swami Rama Nagar, Jolly Grant, Dehradun, 248016, Uttarakhand, India
| | - Akhilesh Kumar
- Himalayan School of Biosciences, Swami Rama Himalayan University, Swami Rama Nagar, Jolly Grant, Dehradun, 248016, Uttarakhand, India
| | - Piyush Pandey
- Soil and Environment Microbiology Laboratory, Department of Microbiology, Assam University, Silchur, 788011, Assam, India
| | - Arun Kumar Gupta
- Department of Food Science and Technology, Graphic Era (Deemed to Be) University, Bell Road, Clement Town, Dehradun, 248002, Uttarakhand, India
| | - Javed Masood Khan
- Department of Food Science and Nutrition, Faculty of Food and Agricultural Sciences, King Saud University, 2460, Riyadh, 11451, Saudi Arabia
| | - Sarvesh Rustagi
- Department of Food Technology, Uttaranchal University, Dehradun, 248007, Uttarakhand, India
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Morelli L, Rodriguez-Concepcion M. Open avenues for carotenoid biofortification of plant tissues. PLANT COMMUNICATIONS 2023; 4:100466. [PMID: 36303429 PMCID: PMC9860184 DOI: 10.1016/j.xplc.2022.100466] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2022] [Revised: 10/18/2022] [Accepted: 10/21/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Plant carotenoids are plastidial isoprenoids that function as photoprotectants, pigments, and precursors of apocarotenoids such as the hormones abscisic acid and strigolactones. Humans do not produce carotenoids but need to obtain them from their diet as precursors of retinoids, including vitamin A. Carotenoids also provide numerous other health benefits. Multiple attempts to improve the carotenoid profile of different crops have been carried out by manipulating carotenoid biosynthesis, degradation, and/or storage. Here, we will focus on open questions and emerging subjects related to the use of biotechnology for carotenoid biofortification. After impressive achievements, new efforts should be directed to extend the use of genome-editing technologies to overcome regulatory constraints and improve consumer acceptance of the carotenoid-enriched products. Another challenge is to prevent off-target effects like those resulting from altered hormone levels and metabolic homeostasis. Research on biofortification of green tissues should also look for new ways to deal with the negative impact that altered carotenoid contents may have on photosynthesis. Once a carotenoid-enriched product has been obtained, additional effort should be devoted to confirming that carotenoid intake from the engineered food is also improved. This work involves ensuring post-harvest stability and assessing bioaccessibility of the biofortified product to confirm that release of carotenoids from the food matrix has not been negatively affected. Successfully addressing these challenges will ensure new milestones in carotenoid biotechnology and biofortification.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luca Morelli
- Institute for Plant Molecular and Cell Biology (IBMCP), CSIC-Universitat Politècnica de València, 46022 Valencia, Spain
| | - Manuel Rodriguez-Concepcion
- Institute for Plant Molecular and Cell Biology (IBMCP), CSIC-Universitat Politècnica de València, 46022 Valencia, Spain.
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