Chen Chuan-Hung, Kuo Tony Chien-Yen, Yang Meng-Han, Chien Ting-Ying, Chu Mei-Ju, Huang Li-Chun, Chen Chien-Yu, Lo Hsiao-Feng, Jeng Shih-Tong, Chen Long-Fang O
Institute of Plant and Microbial Biology, Academia Sinica, 128 Sec, 2, Academia Rd, Nankang, Taipei 11529, Taiwan.
BMC Genomics. 2014 Jul 9;15(1):578. doi: 10.1186/1471-2164-15-578.
Agarwood is derived from Aquilaria trees, the trade of which has come under strict control with a listing in Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. Many secondary metabolites of agarwood are known to have medicinal value to humans, including compounds that have been shown to elicit sedative effects and exhibit anti-cancer properties. However, little is known about the genome, transcriptome, and the biosynthetic pathways responsible for producing such secondary metabolites in agarwood.
In this study, we present a draft genome and a putative pathway for cucurbitacin E and I, compounds with known medicinal value, from in vitro Aquilaria agallocha agarwood. DNA and RNA data are utilized to annotate many genes and protein functions in the draft genome. The expression changes for cucurbitacin E and I are shown to be consistent with known responses of A. agallocha to biotic stress and a set of homologous genes in Arabidopsis thaliana related to cucurbitacin bio-synthesis is presented and validated through qRT-PCR.
This study is the first attempt to identify cucurbitacin E and I from in vitro agarwood and the first draft genome for any species of Aquilaria. The results of this study will aid in future investigations of secondary metabolite pathways in Aquilaria and other non-model medicinal plants.
沉香源自沉香属树木，由于其被列入《濒危野生动植物种国际贸易公约》附录二，其贸易受到严格管控。已知沉香的许多次生代谢产物对人类具有药用价值，包括已被证明具有镇静作用和抗癌特性的化合物。然而，关于沉香中负责产生此类次生代谢产物的基因组、转录组和生物合成途径，人们了解甚少。
在本研究中，我们展示了来自体外培养的沉香属沉香的葫芦素E和I（具有已知药用价值的化合物）的基因组草图和假定途径。利用DNA和RNA数据对基因组草图中的许多基因和蛋白质功能进行注释。葫芦素E和I的表达变化显示与沉香对生物胁迫的已知反应一致，并展示了拟南芥中一组与葫芦素生物合成相关的同源基因，并通过qRT-PCR进行了验证。
本研究首次尝试从体外培养的沉香中鉴定葫芦素E和I，并首次绘制了任何沉香属物种的基因组草图。本研究结果将有助于未来对沉香及其他非模式药用植物次生代谢产物途径的研究。
