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Xu D, Wang Z, Zhuang W, Zhang F, Xie Y, Wang T. Genome-Wide Identification and Expression Pattern Analysis of BAHD Acyltransferase Family in Taxus mairei. Int J Mol Sci 2024; 25:3777. [PMID: 38612586 PMCID: PMC11011543 DOI: 10.3390/ijms25073777] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2024] [Revised: 03/21/2024] [Accepted: 03/26/2024] [Indexed: 04/14/2024] Open
Abstract
BAHD acyltransferases are involved in catalyzing and regulating the secondary metabolism in plants. Despite this, the members of BAHD family and their functions have not been reported in the Taxus species. In this study, a total of 123 TwBAHD acyltransferases from Taxus wallichiana var. mairei genome were identified and divided into six clades based on phylogenetic analysis, of which Clade VI contained a Taxus-specific branch of 52 members potentially involved in taxol biosynthesis. Most TwBAHDs from the same clade shared similar conserved motifs and gene structures. Besides the typical conserved motifs within the BAHD family, the YPLAGR motif was also conserved in multiple clades of T. mairei. Moreover, only one pair of tandem duplicate genes was found on chromosome 1, with a Ka/Ks ratio < 1, indicating that the function of duplicate genes did not differentiate significantly. RNA-seq analysis revealed different expression patterns of TwBAHDs in MeJA induction and tissue-specific expression experiments. Several TwBAHD genes in the Taxus-specific branch were highly expressed in different tissues of T. mairei, suggesting an important role in the taxol pathway. This study provides comprehensive information for the TwBAHD gene family and sets up a basis for its potential functions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Donghuan Xu
- Jiangsu Key Laboratory for the Research and Utilization of Plant Resources, Institute of Botany, Jiangsu Province and Chinese Academy of Sciences (Nanjing Botanical Garden Mem. Sun Yat-Sen), Nanjing 210014, China; (D.X.); (Z.W.); (W.Z.)
- Co-Innovation Center for Sustainable Forestry in Southern China, College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, China;
| | - Zhong Wang
- Jiangsu Key Laboratory for the Research and Utilization of Plant Resources, Institute of Botany, Jiangsu Province and Chinese Academy of Sciences (Nanjing Botanical Garden Mem. Sun Yat-Sen), Nanjing 210014, China; (D.X.); (Z.W.); (W.Z.)
| | - Weibing Zhuang
- Jiangsu Key Laboratory for the Research and Utilization of Plant Resources, Institute of Botany, Jiangsu Province and Chinese Academy of Sciences (Nanjing Botanical Garden Mem. Sun Yat-Sen), Nanjing 210014, China; (D.X.); (Z.W.); (W.Z.)
| | - Fan Zhang
- Jiangsu Key Laboratory for the Research and Utilization of Plant Resources, Institute of Botany, Jiangsu Province and Chinese Academy of Sciences (Nanjing Botanical Garden Mem. Sun Yat-Sen), Nanjing 210014, China; (D.X.); (Z.W.); (W.Z.)
- Co-Innovation Center for Sustainable Forestry in Southern China, College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, China;
| | - Yinfeng Xie
- Co-Innovation Center for Sustainable Forestry in Southern China, College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, China;
| | - Tao Wang
- Jiangsu Key Laboratory for the Research and Utilization of Plant Resources, Institute of Botany, Jiangsu Province and Chinese Academy of Sciences (Nanjing Botanical Garden Mem. Sun Yat-Sen), Nanjing 210014, China; (D.X.); (Z.W.); (W.Z.)
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Zhou J, Zou X, Deng Z, Duan L. Analysing a Group of Homologous BAHD Enzymes Provides Insights into the Evolutionary Transition of Rosmarinic Acid Synthases from Hydroxycinnamoyl-CoA:Shikimate/Quinate Hydroxycinnamoyl Transferases. PLANTS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2024; 13:512. [PMID: 38498481 PMCID: PMC10892161 DOI: 10.3390/plants13040512] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2024] [Revised: 02/01/2024] [Accepted: 02/05/2024] [Indexed: 03/20/2024]
Abstract
The interplay of various enzymes and compounds gives rise to the intricate secondary metabolic networks observed today. However, the current understanding of their formation and expansion remains limited. BAHD acyltransferases play important roles in the biosynthesis of numerous significant secondary metabolites. In plants, they are widely distributed and exhibit a diverse range of activities. Among them, rosmarinic acid synthase (RAS) and hydroxycinnamoyl-CoA:shikimate/quinate hydroxycinnamoyl transferase (HCT) have gained significant recognition and have been extensively investigated as prominent members of the BAHD acyltransferase family. Here, we conducted a comprehensive study on a unique group of RAS homologous enzymes in Mentha longifolia that display both catalytic activities and molecular features similar to HCT and Lamiaceae RAS. Subsequent phylogenetic and comparative genome analyses revealed their derivation from expansion events within the HCT gene family, indicating their potential as collateral branches along the evolutionary trajectory, leading to Lamiaceae RAS while still retaining certain ancestral vestiges. This discovery provides more detailed insights into the evolution from HCT to RAS. Our collective findings indicate that gene duplication is the driving force behind the observed evolutionary pattern in plant-specialized enzymes, which probably originated from ancestral enzyme promiscuity and were subsequently shaped by principles of biological adaptation.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Lian Duan
- Key Laboratory of Combinatory Biosynthesis and Drug Discovery, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmaceutical Science, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430071, China; (J.Z.); (X.Z.); (Z.D.)
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Yang Z, Zhou N, Jiang X, Wang L. Loop Evolutionary Patterns Shape Catalytic Efficiency of TRI101/201 for Trichothecenes: Insights into Protein-Substrate Interactions. J Chem Inf Model 2023; 63:6316-6331. [PMID: 37821422 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jcim.3c00787] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/13/2023]
Abstract
Trichothecenes are highly toxic mycotoxins produced by Fusarium fungi, while TRI101/201 family enzymes play a crucial role in detoxification through acetylation. Studies on the substrate specificity and catalytic kinetics of TRI101/201 have revealed distinct kinetic characteristics, with significant differences observed in catalytic efficiency toward deoxynivalenol, while the catalytic efficiency for T-2 toxin remains relatively consistent. In this study, we used structural bioinformatics analysis and a molecular dynamics simulation workflow to investigate the mechanism underlying the differential catalytic activity of TRI101/201. The findings revealed that the binding stability between trichothecenes and TRI101/201 hinges primarily on a hydrophobic cage structure within the binding site. An intrinsic disordered loop, termed loop cover, defined the evolutionary patterns of the TRI101/201 protein family that are categorized into four subfamilies (V1/V2/V3/M). Furthermore, the unique loop displayed different conformations among these subfamilies' structures, which served to disrupt (V1/V2/V3) or reinforce (M) the hydrophobic cages. The disrupted cages enhanced the water exposure of the hydrophilic moieties of substrates like deoxynivalenol and thereby hindered their binding to the catalytic sites of V-type enzymes. In contrast, this water exposure does not affect substrates like T-2 toxin, which have more hydrophobic substituents, resulting in a comparable catalytic efficiency of both V- and M-type enzymes. Overall, our studies provide theoretical support for understanding the catalytic mechanism of TRI101/201, which shows how an intrinsic disordered loop could impact the protein-ligand binding and suggests a direction for rational protein design in the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zezheng Yang
- Taishan College, Shandong University, 266237 Qingdao, China
| | - Nana Zhou
- COFCO Nutrition and Health Research Institute, 102209 Beijing, China
| | - Xukai Jiang
- National Glycoengineering Research Center, Shandong University, 266237 Qingdao, China
| | - Lushan Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Technology, Shandong University, 266237 Qingdao, China
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Xu D, Wang Z, Zhuang W, Wang T, Xie Y. Family characteristics, phylogenetic reconstruction, and potential applications of the plant BAHD acyltransferase family. FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2023; 14:1218914. [PMID: 37868312 PMCID: PMC10585174 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2023.1218914] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/08/2023] [Accepted: 09/14/2023] [Indexed: 10/24/2023]
Abstract
The BAHD acyltransferase family is a class of proteins in plants that can acylate a variety of primary and specialized secondary metabolites. The typically acylated products have greatly improved stability, lipid solubility, and bioavailability and thus show significant differences in their physicochemical properties and pharmacological activities. Here, we review the protein structure, catalytic mechanism, and phylogenetic reconstruction of plant BAHD acyltransferases to describe their family characteristics, acylation reactions, and the processes of potential functional differentiation. Moreover, the potential applications of the BAHD family in human activities are discussed from the perspectives of improving the quality of economic plants, enhancing the efficacy of medicinal plants, improving plant biomass for use in biofuel, and promoting stress resistance of land plants. This review provides a reference for the research and production of plant BAHD acyltransferases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Donghuan Xu
- Co-Innovation Center for Sustainable Forestry in Southern China, College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing, China
- Jiangsu Key Laboratory for the Research and Utilization of Plant Resources, Institute of Botany, Jiangsu Province and Chinese Academy of Sciences (Nanjing Botanical Garden Mem. Sun Yat-Sen), Nanjing, China
| | - Zhong Wang
- Jiangsu Key Laboratory for the Research and Utilization of Plant Resources, Institute of Botany, Jiangsu Province and Chinese Academy of Sciences (Nanjing Botanical Garden Mem. Sun Yat-Sen), Nanjing, China
| | - Weibing Zhuang
- Jiangsu Key Laboratory for the Research and Utilization of Plant Resources, Institute of Botany, Jiangsu Province and Chinese Academy of Sciences (Nanjing Botanical Garden Mem. Sun Yat-Sen), Nanjing, China
| | - Tao Wang
- Jiangsu Key Laboratory for the Research and Utilization of Plant Resources, Institute of Botany, Jiangsu Province and Chinese Academy of Sciences (Nanjing Botanical Garden Mem. Sun Yat-Sen), Nanjing, China
| | - Yinfeng Xie
- Co-Innovation Center for Sustainable Forestry in Southern China, College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing, China
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Wang L, Jiang Z, Zhang J, Chen K, Zhang M, Wang Z, Wang B, Ye M, Qiao X. Characterization and structure-based protein engineering of a regiospecific saponin acetyltransferase from Astragalus membranaceus. Nat Commun 2023; 14:5969. [PMID: 37749089 PMCID: PMC10519980 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-41599-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2023] [Accepted: 09/12/2023] [Indexed: 09/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Acetylation contributes to the bioactivity of numerous medicinally important natural products. However, little is known about the acetylation on sugar moieties. Here we report a saponin acetyltransferase from Astragalus membranaceus. AmAT7-3 is discovered through a stepwise gene mining approach and characterized as the xylose C3'/C4'-O-acetyltransferse of astragaloside IV (1). To elucidate its catalytic mechanism, complex crystal structures of AmAT7-3/1 and AmAT7-3A310G/1 are obtained, which reveal a large active pocket decided by a specific sequence AADAG. Combining with QM/MM computation, the regiospecificity of AmAT7-3 is determined by sugar positioning modulated by surrounding amino acids including #A310 and #L290. Furthermore, a small mutant library is built using semi-rational design, where variants A310G and A310W are found to catalyze specific C3'-O and C4'-O acetylation, respectively. AmAT7-3 and its variants are also employed to acetylate other bioactive saponins. This work expands the understanding of saponin acetyltransferases, and provide efficient catalytic tools for saponin acetylation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Linlin Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Natural and Biomimetic Drugs, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Peking University, 38 Xueyuan Road, Beijing, 100191, China
| | - Zhihui Jiang
- State Key Laboratory of Physical Chemistry of Solid Surfaces and Fujian Provincial Key Laboratory of Theoretical and Computational Chemistry, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Xiamen University, 361005, Xiamen, China
| | - Jiahe Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Natural and Biomimetic Drugs, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Peking University, 38 Xueyuan Road, Beijing, 100191, China
| | - Kuan Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Natural and Biomimetic Drugs, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Peking University, 38 Xueyuan Road, Beijing, 100191, China
| | - Meng Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Natural and Biomimetic Drugs, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Peking University, 38 Xueyuan Road, Beijing, 100191, China
| | - Zilong Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Natural and Biomimetic Drugs, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Peking University, 38 Xueyuan Road, Beijing, 100191, China
| | - Binju Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Physical Chemistry of Solid Surfaces and Fujian Provincial Key Laboratory of Theoretical and Computational Chemistry, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Xiamen University, 361005, Xiamen, China.
| | - Min Ye
- State Key Laboratory of Natural and Biomimetic Drugs, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Peking University, 38 Xueyuan Road, Beijing, 100191, China.
- Peking University-Yunnan Baiyao International Medical Research Center, 38 Xueyuan Road, Beijing, 100191, China.
| | - Xue Qiao
- State Key Laboratory of Natural and Biomimetic Drugs, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Peking University, 38 Xueyuan Road, Beijing, 100191, China.
- Peking University-Yunnan Baiyao International Medical Research Center, 38 Xueyuan Road, Beijing, 100191, China.
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Yamane M, Takenoya M, Yajima S, Sue M. Molecular and structural characterization of agmatine coumaroyltransferase in Triticeae, the key regulator of hydroxycinnamic acid amide accumulation. PHYTOCHEMISTRY 2021; 189:112825. [PMID: 34119689 DOI: 10.1016/j.phytochem.2021.112825] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2021] [Revised: 05/20/2021] [Accepted: 05/24/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Hydroxycinnamic acid amides (HCAAs) are involved in stress-induced defense in many plant species. Barley accumulates high concentrations of HCAAs irrespective of exogenous stressors, while other major cereals such as wheat and rice accumulate relatively low levels of HCAAs in intact tissues. The primary HCAA species in barley are biosynthesized by agmatine p-coumaroyltransferase (ACT), an N-acyltransferase of the BAHD superfamily. However, the molecular basis underlying barley's uniquely high HCAA accumulation has not been elucidated, and information regarding the structural details of BAHD N-acyltransferases is limited. Hence, we aimed to investigate the ACTs of family Poaceae. We isolated ACT (-like) genes, including those previously undescribed, and investigated their enzymatic and genetic features. All the identified enzymes belonged to clade IVa of the BAHD superfamily. The barley and wheat ACTs were further categorized, based on catalytic properties and primary structures, into ACT1 and ACT2 groups, the encoding loci of which are neighbors on the same chromosome. While all ACTs exhibited similar Km values for CoA-thioesters (acyl-group donors), members of the ACT1 group showed a distinctly higher affinity for agmatine (acyl-acceptor). Among the ACTs tested, an ACT isozyme in barley (HvACT1-1) showed the highest catalytic efficiency and transcript level, indicating that ACT regulates high-level HCAA accumulation in barley. For further enzymatic characterization of the ACTs, we crystalized wheat ACT2 (TaACT2) and determined its structure at 2.3 Å resolution. Structural alignment of TaACT2 and HvACT1-1 showed that the architectures of the substrate binding pockets were well conserved. However, the structure of a loop located at the entrance to acyl-acceptor binding site may be more flexible in TaACT2, which could be responsible for the lower affinity of TaACT2 to agmatine. Mutations of HvACT1-1 at Glu372 and Asp374 within one of the clade-IV specific motifs facing the deduced acyl-acceptor binding pocket caused significant catalytic deterioration toward agmatine both in Km and kcat, suggesting their key roles in acyl acceptor binding by the clade-IV enzymes. This study elucidated the molecular basis of how plants accumulate defensive specialized metabolites and provided insights into developing efficient and eco-friendly agricultural methods.
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Affiliation(s)
- Miyo Yamane
- Department of Agricultural Chemistry, Tokyo University of Agriculture, Setagaya, Tokyo, 156-8502, Japan
| | - Mihoko Takenoya
- Department of Bioscience, Tokyo University of Agriculture, Setagaya, Tokyo, 156-8502, Japan
| | - Shunsuke Yajima
- Department of Bioscience, Tokyo University of Agriculture, Setagaya, Tokyo, 156-8502, Japan
| | - Masayuki Sue
- Department of Agricultural Chemistry, Tokyo University of Agriculture, Setagaya, Tokyo, 156-8502, Japan.
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