Ontiveros-Cisneros Abraham, Salfeld Jule, Ding Bao-Jian, Wang Hong-Lei, Moss Oliver, Friberg Magne, Van Moerkercke Alex, Löfstedt Christer, Van Aken Olivier
Department of Biology, Lund University, Lund, Sweden.
Physiol Plant. 2025 Jan-Feb;177(1):e70110. doi: 10.1111/ppl.70110.
Aphids cause massive agricultural losses through direct damage or as pathogen vectors. Control often relies on insecticides, which are expensive and not selective. An interesting alternative is to use aphid sex pheromones nepetalactone (NON) and nepetalactol (NOL) to interfere with aphid mating or attract aphid predators. Here, we explore production of these compounds in plants, as their precursors can be derived from mevalonate (MVA) and methylerythritol phosphate (MEP) pathways. By introducing six genes, including a major latex protein-like (MLPL) enzyme, we engineered a functional nepetalactol biosynthetic pathway into plants. Transient expression of these enzymes in N. benthamiana caused production of nepetalactone, without the need for external supplementation with substrates. Targeting all six enzymes into the chloroplast appeared to result in higher NON yields than just chloroplast-targeting the first two enzymes. We could not detect NOL, suggesting it is rapidly oxidised to NON. In addition, we produced NON in stably transformed Camelina sativa (Camelina) lines. Interestingly, the specific NON enantiomer was different in N. benthamiana compared to in Camelina, indicating the value of different platforms for producing specific isoforms. This opens possibilities for using plants as green factories of pheromones for baits or as pheromone dispensers that interfere with insect behaviour.
蚜虫通过直接损害或作为病原体载体导致大量农业损失。防治通常依赖于杀虫剂，而杀虫剂价格昂贵且缺乏选择性。一种有趣的替代方法是使用蚜虫性信息素荆芥内酯（NON）和荆芥醇（NOL）来干扰蚜虫交配或吸引蚜虫天敌。在此，我们探索这些化合物在植物中的生产情况，因为它们的前体可源自甲羟戊酸（MVA）和甲基赤藓糖醇磷酸（MEP）途径。通过引入六个基因，包括一种类主要乳胶蛋白（MLPL）酶，我们在植物中构建了一条功能性的荆芥醇生物合成途径。这些酶在本氏烟草中的瞬时表达导致了荆芥内酯的产生，而无需外部添加底物。将所有六种酶靶向导入叶绿体似乎比仅将前两种酶靶向导入叶绿体产生更高的NON产量。我们未能检测到NOL，这表明它会迅速氧化为NON。此外，我们在稳定转化的亚麻荠品系中生产了NON。有趣的是，与亚麻荠相比，本氏烟草中特定的NON对映体有所不同，这表明不同平台对于生产特定异构体的价值。这为将植物用作信息素诱饵的绿色工厂或用作干扰昆虫行为的信息素释放器开辟了可能性。
