Identification and analysis of sucrose synthase gene family associated with polysaccharide biosynthesis in by transcriptomic analysis.

BACKGROUND

is a valuable traditional medicinal herb with high commercial value. stems contain abundant polysaccharides which are one of the main bioactive components. However, although some genes related to the synthesis of the polysaccharides have been reported, more key genes need to be further elucidated.

RESULTS

In this study, the contents of polysaccharides and mannose in stems at four developmental stages were compared, and the stems' transcriptomes were analyzed to explore the synthesis mechanism of the polysaccharides. Many genes involved in starch and sucrose metabolisms were identified by KEGG pathway analysis. Further analysis found that sucrose synthase (SUS; EC 2.4.1.13) gene maybe participated in the polysaccharide synthesis. Hence, we further investigated the genomic characteristics and evolution relationships of the family in plants. The result suggested that the SUS gene of () had undergone the expansion characterized by tandem duplication which might be related to the enrichment of the polysaccharides in stems. Moreover, expression analyses of the displayed significant divergent patterns in different tissues and could be divided into two main groups in the stems with four developmental stages.

CONCLUSION

In general, our results revealed that is likely involved in the metabolic process of the stem polysaccharides, providing crucial clues for exploiting the key genes associated with the polysaccharide synthesis.