College of life Science, Jilin Agricultural University, Changchun 130118, China.
College of life Science, Jilin Agricultural University, Changchun 130118, China.
Chin J Nat Med. 2020 Sep;18(9):684-695. doi: 10.1016/S1875-5364(20)60007-3.
Schisandra chinensis Turcz. (Baill.) is a plant species with fruits that have been well known in Far Eastern medicine for a long time. It has traditionally been used as a stimulating and fortifying agent in cases of physical exhaustion and to inhibit fatigue. The major bioactive compounds found in S. chinensis are lignans with a dibenzocyclooctadiene skeleton, but little is known about their biosynthesis in plants. S. chinensis is the ideal medicinal plant for studying the biosynthesis of lignans, especially the dibenzocyclooctadiene skeleton. Genomic information for this important herbal plant is unavailable. To better understand the lignan biosynthesis pathway, we generated transcriptome sequences from the fruit during ripening and performed de novo sequence assembly, yielding 136 843 unique transcripts with N50 of 1778 bp. Putative functions could be assigned to 41 824 transcripts (51.57%) based on BLAST searches against annotation databases including GO (Gene ontology) and KEGG (Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes). Furthermore, 22 candidate cytochrome P450 genes and 15 candidate dirigent proteins genes that were most likely involved in the lignan biosynthesis pathway were discovered based on transcriptome sequencing of S. chinensis. The genomic data obtained from S. chinensis, especially the identification of putative genes involved in the lignan biosynthesis pathway, will facilitate our understanding of lignan biosynthesis at the molecular level. The lignan metabolite profiles were analyzed by metabolomes, the accumulation patterns of 30 metabolites involved in the lignan pathway were studied. Co-expression network of lignan contents and transcriptional changes showed 355 strong correlations (correlation coefficient, R > 0.9) between 21 compounds and 153 transcripts. Furthermore, the comprehensive analysis and characterization of the genes involved in lignan pathways and the metabolite profiles of lignans are expected to provide better insight regarding the diversity of the chemical composition, synthetic characteristics, and regulatory mechanisms of this medical herb.
北五味子（Schisandra chinensis Turcz. (Baill.)）是一种植物物种，其果实长期以来在远东医学中广为人知。它传统上被用作身体疲劳时的刺激和增强剂，以抑制疲劳。在北五味子中发现的主要生物活性化合物是具有二苯并环辛二烯骨架的木脂素，但对其在植物中的生物合成知之甚少。北五味子是研究木脂素生物合成的理想药用植物，特别是二苯并环辛二烯骨架。这种重要草药植物的基因组信息尚不可用。为了更好地理解木脂素生物合成途径，我们在果实成熟过程中生成了转录组序列，并进行了从头组装，产生了 136843 个独特的转录本，N50 为 1778bp。根据对包括 GO（基因本体论）和 KEGG（京都基因与基因组百科全书）注释数据库的 BLAST 搜索，可将 41824 个转录本（51.57%）分配到假定功能。此外，基于北五味子转录组测序，发现了 22 个候选细胞色素 P450 基因和 15 个候选定向蛋白基因，它们最有可能参与木脂素生物合成途径。从北五味子获得的基因组数据，特别是参与木脂素生物合成途径的假定基因的鉴定，将有助于我们从分子水平理解木脂素生物合成。通过代谢组学分析了木脂素代谢物谱，研究了 30 种参与木脂素途径的代谢物的积累模式。木脂素含量和转录变化的共表达网络显示，21 种化合物与 153 种转录本之间存在 355 种强相关性（相关系数 R>0.9）。此外，对木脂素途径相关基因和木脂素代谢物谱的综合分析和特征描述，有望为这种药用植物的化学成分多样性、合成特征和调控机制提供更好的认识。
