Simiyu David Charles, Jang Jin Hoon, Lee Ok Ran
Department of Applied Plant Science, College of Agriculture and Life Science, Chonnam National University, Gwangju, Republic of Korea.
Interdisciplinary Program in IT-Bio Convergence System, Chonnam National University, Gwangju, Republic of Korea.
Front Plant Sci. 2023 Jul 13;14:1212979. doi: 10.3389/fpls.2023.1212979. eCollection 2023.
The lignification of plant secondary walls is an important process that provides plants with mechanical support. However, the presence of lignin in the secondary walls affects the readily availability of cellulose required in various industries, including the biofuel, paper, and textile industries. Thus, plants with less lignin are ideal for usage in such industries. Molecular studies have identified genes that regulate plant lignification, including group III plant-specific patatin-related phospholipase genes. Recent studies have reported decreased lignin content when (from ), and (from ) were overexpressed in . However, the role played by a closely related gene in lignin biosynthesis has not yet been reported. In this study, we found that overexpression of the significantly reduced the lignin content in secondary cell walls, whereas the silencing of the gene increased secondary walls lignification. Transcript level analysis showed that the key structural and regulatory genes involved in the lignin biosynthesis pathway decreased in overexpression, and increased in plants with silenced . Further analysis revealed that played an influential role in several physiological processes including seed germination, and chlorophyll accumulation. Moreover, the gene also influenced the size of plants and plant organs, including leaves, seeds, and root hairs. Generally, our study provides important insights toward the use of genetic engineering for lignin reduction in plants and provides information about the agronomical and physiological suitability of transgenic plants for utilization in biomass processing industries.
植物次生壁的木质化是一个重要过程，为植物提供机械支撑。然而，次生壁中木质素的存在影响了包括生物燃料、造纸和纺织工业在内的各个行业所需纤维素的可得性。因此，木质素含量较低的植物是这些行业理想的使用材料。分子研究已经鉴定出调控植物木质化的基因，包括III类植物特异性马铃薯Patatin相关磷脂酶基因。最近的研究报道，当（来自）和（来自）在中过表达时，木质素含量降低。然而，一个密切相关的基因在木质素生物合成中所起的作用尚未见报道。在本研究中，我们发现过表达显著降低了次生细胞壁中的木质素含量，而该基因的沉默则增加了次生壁的木质化。转录水平分析表明，参与木质素生物合成途径的关键结构和调控基因在过表达时减少，在基因沉默的植物中增加。进一步分析表明，在包括种子萌发和叶绿素积累在内的几个生理过程中发挥了重要作用。此外，该基因还影响植物和植物器官的大小，包括叶子、种子和根毛。总的来说，我们的研究为利用基因工程降低植物木质素提供了重要见解，并提供了转基因植物在生物质加工行业中农艺和生理适宜性的信息。
