甜菊糖苷积累与其生物合成基因表达的关系

为探究甜叶菊叶片中甜菊糖苷积累与其合成途径上关键基因表达的关系,本研究分别检测了鑫丰3号苗期不同冠层和3个不同品种甜叶菊(守田3号、江甜3号、谱星1号)收获期混合叶片样品中多种糖苷的含量,同时定量检测对应样品中甜菊糖苷合成关键基因的表达水平。结果显示,总糖苷在鑫丰3号顶叶中最高,底叶中最低,而多数检测基因(6/8)表达水平也在顶叶最高底叶中最低;单一糖苷甜菊苷在顶叶中积累最高,而其催化酶编码基因Sr UGT74G1表达也在顶叶中最高;莱鲍迪苷A则在底叶中积累最多,其催化酶编码基因Sr UGT76G1表达水平也在底叶中表达最高。3个品种相比,总糖苷和莱鲍迪苷A的积累在江甜3号中最高,谱星1号中最低;甜菊苷的积累在守田3号中最高,江甜3号中最低,但基因表达水平与糖苷积累趋势一致的类似结果并未在不同品种间出现。由此可知,甜菊糖苷合成基因的表达水平可以影响总糖苷的积累,且在同一甜叶菊品种中单一糖苷合成调控基因的表达水平可以反映其调控的单糖苷的积累量。     

基于天然低共熔溶剂的甜叶菊中甜菊糖绿色提取方法及优化

尝试利用天然低共熔溶剂(NADES)提取甜叶菊(Stevia rebaudiana)中的甜菊糖, 探索一种高效、绿色和环保的甜菊糖提取新方法。以甜叶菊干叶为原料, 对照传统提取溶剂水, 以甜菊糖中甜菊苷和莱鲍迪苷A的提取浓度作为指标, 筛选出最优的NADES提取配方, 然后通过Box-Behnken响应面法对NADES提取甜叶菊中甜菊糖的工艺条件进行筛选优化。结果表明, 提取效率最高的NADES配方为1,2-丙二醇:甘油:水=8:1:1 (v/v/v), 提取的甜菊苷浓度为2.59 mg∙mL^-1, 比水提取高16.40%, 提取的莱鲍迪苷A浓度为1.06 mg∙mL^-1, 比水提取高12.62%; 通过响应面法得到最优提取条件: 提取时间90分钟, 提取温度60°C, 超声功率为80 J∙s^-1, 预测甜菊苷提取浓度为3.49 mg∙mL^-1, 莱鲍迪苷A提取浓度为1.43 mg∙mL^-1, 与实验验证值(甜菊苷浓度为3.48 mg∙mL^-1, 莱鲍迪苷A浓度为1.42 mg∙mL^-1)接近。在最优条件下, 甜菊苷提取浓度比初始条件提高了34.36%, 莱鲍迪甘A提取浓度比初始条件提高了33.96%。NADES绿色环保, 且提取效率高于传统溶剂, 可用于甜叶菊中甜菊糖的绿色提取; 同时, 该提取方法可为后续推广至其它大宗经济植物类天然产物的绿色工业生产提供参考。     

连作改变土壤性状对甜叶菊产量和品质的影响

为了解连作障碍的产生机理，对甜叶菊(Stevia rebaudiana)连作后的土壤性状变化进行了研究，并探讨土壤性状与叶片干质量和甜菊糖苷之间的相关性。结果表明，连作2 a和3 a的土壤pH值、有机质、速效磷、脲酶、过氧化氢酶、蔗糖酶、磷酸酶和甜叶菊叶片干质量及甜菊糖苷组分含量均无显著差异。连作4 a后，土壤pH值、全氮和速效钾含量显著下降，分别比对照降低了10.07%、14.38%和24.79%，土壤电导率(EC)和速效磷含量显著增加，是对照的2.57和1.70倍；土壤脲酶、蔗糖酶、磷酸酶活性、微生物量碳和微生物量氮在连作4 a降到最低，比对照分别降低了63.68%、72.03%、47.43%、78.35%和41.07；多酚氧化酶则在连作4a达到最高，是对照的4.22倍；与对照相比，连作4a的叶片干质量和甜菊苷含量降低了29.51%和16.00%，莱鲍迪苷A含量则增加了22.19%。叶片干质量及甜菊糖苷含量与土壤性状间存在着相关性。因此，连作通过改变土壤性状影响甜叶菊产量和品质，生产中最大连作年限不宜超过3 a。     

SmGGPPS2对丹参酮合成的影响

香叶基香叶基焦磷酸合酶(GGPPS)是植物二萜类次生代谢物合成过程中的重要调控位点。在药用模式植物丹参(Salvia miltiorrhiza)中, GGPPS基因家族成员SmGGPPS2的生物学功能及其在丹参酮有效成分合成过程中的作用尚不明确。分别在丹参植株中过表达和RNA干涉SmGGPPS2基因, 并对转基因丹参中丹参酮含量和丹参酮合成相关基因表达量 以及转基因植物生理指标进行检测, 结果表明, 过表达SmGGPPS2株系中的丹参酮IIA和铁锈醇等脂溶性成分含量高于野生型; RNA干涉SmGGPPS2株系中的丹参酮IIA和铁锈醇等脂溶性成分含量均低于野生型。调节表达SmGGPPS2后, 丹参株系中SmHMGR1和SmCPS1等多个关键酶基因的表达都呈现明显的变化。此外, 调节表达SmGGPPS2还影响丹参植株抗性。以上结果表明, SmGGPPS2在丹参酮等萜类物质的合成中起重要的调控作用。     

植物多基因干扰载体体系构建与效用分析

多数重要的功能基因属于多基因家族,这些家族成员间存在功能冗余,高效的多基因干扰体系对研究多基因家族成员的生物学功能及其分子调控机制具有重要意义。对pCAMBIA1301载体改造,构建了适用于植物的多基因干扰体系pCAMBIA1301m和pCAMBIA1301s。使用该多基因干扰体系构建了四基因的干扰载体pCAMBIA1301m：35S∷SlPP2C1-2-3-4,4个目标基因为来源于番茄PP2C家族A组的PP2C1、PP2C2、PP2C3和PP2C4,并通过遗传转化导入番茄,用GUS染色和PCR检测转基因阳性植株,再利用RT-qPCR技术检测T₁和T₂代转基因植株中目标基因的干扰效率,用T₂代种子分析转基因番茄对ABA敏感性。结果表明,应用该干扰体系成功获得了四基因干扰的转基因植株35S∷SlPP2C1-2-3-4。在转基因番茄中4个目标基因的表达量显著低于野生型,其干扰效率均高于70%,转基因番茄种子萌发具有强烈的ABA不敏感性。多基因干扰体系能高效地同时沉默多个目标基因。     

甜菊醇糖苷生物合成途径关键酶基因KA13H的克隆及序列分析

本研究利用RT-PCR方法从甜叶菊叶片中分离了一个与甜菊醇糖苷生物合成密切相关的基因KA13H,对该基因的ORF、编码产物结构、同源性比对及次级结构等进行了生物信息学预测分析,同时初步分析该基因的组织表达和原核表达。经DNAMAN6.0软件分析,该基因编码一条分子量为54.476kD的由476个氨基酸残基组成的多肽,含有典型的细胞色素P450的血红素结合位点FXXGXXXCXG,TMPRED程序预测其C-端含有一个明显的跨膜区MIQVLTPILLFLIFFVFWKVY,是一个典型的细胞色素P450基因。推断的KA13H编码产物与其它生物合成相关细胞色素P450同源比对和系统发生分析表明,该蛋白与苜蓿(Medicago truncatula)CYP716A12和云杉(Sitka spruce)CYP720B1的一致性较高,分别为51%和46%,推测KA13H可能与CYP716A12和CYP720B1具有类似的功能。KA13H次级结构分析结果表明,KA13H与CYP74A2的一致性仅为15%,但是它们却有着类似的次级结构,都含有6个基质识别位点(SRSs)。半定量RT-PCR分析表明:KA13H在根、茎、叶和花中呈组成型表达,叶和花中的表达丰度较高;将该基因融合到原核表达载体pGEX-4T-1中,在原核中得到了成功表达。根据本研究结果,我们推测KA13H可能在甜菊醇糖苷生物合成过程中发挥着重要作用,该基因的克隆和表达分析为进一步深入了解甜菊醇的生物合成过程中相关酶和基因的功能奠定了基础。     

甜叶菊中新KAH基因的克隆及表达模式分析

为进一步揭示甜菊糖苷生物合成途径的分子调控机制,探究甜菊糖苷在甜叶菊叶片中积累差异原因。从不同甜叶菊材料中分别克隆关键分支点酶KAH的编码基因,并对获得的核苷酸序列进行生物学功能分析和预测。结果显示,最终共获得6条高度同源的核苷酸序列,个别关键碱基的突变造成序列开放读码框位置和大小的显著差异,共预测获得7个不同KAH编码基因。KAH1、KAH2同时存在于SR1、SR3、鑫丰3号、谱星1号和守田3号中,KAH3存在于江甜1号和守田3号中,KAH4存在于江甜3号中,KAH5、KAH6、KAH7均存在于SR2中且Sr KAHs在甜菊糖苷积累多的品种和组织部位中表达更高。7个KAH基因均含有P450保守结构域且均属于CYP716家族成员;亚细胞定位预测KAH2和KAH4定位于细胞质其他5个均定位在叶绿体中。甜叶菊中KAH编码基因的数目、氨基酸长度及在亚细胞结构的定位差异或许是导致甜叶菊不同品种和组织中Sr KAHs表达和功能差异的主要原因并最终糖苷的积累差异。     

天山雪莲SiSAD基因与拟南芥AtFAB2基因转化 烟草的抗寒性分析

通过转基因烟草(Nicotiana tabacum)验证天山雪莲(Saussurea involucrata) Δ9硬脂酰-ACP脱饱和酶基因SiSAD与拟南芥(Arabidopsis thaliana)中同源基因AtFAB2的抗寒性功能。利用农杆菌介导法将植物表达载体P_SiSAD:AtFAB2和P_SiSAD:SiSAD导入烟草, 然后将2种转基因和野生型烟草分别置于20°C、10°C、5°C、0°C及-2°C下处理2小时, 检测其相对电导率、丙二醛(MDA)含量、叶绿素荧光参数(F_v/F_m)及脂肪酸含量。将-2°C处理2小时后的植株置于25°C培养1周进行生长恢复实验。结果表明, 生长恢复实验中转SiSAD基因烟草的恢复效果显著优于转AtFAB2基因和野生型烟草。在0°C和-2°C处理2小时后, 转SiSAD、AtFAB2基因型和野生型烟草的相对电导率和丙二醛含量呈现显著递增趋势; 转SiSAD、AtFAB2基因型烟草的F_v/F_m显著高于野生型烟草, 其中, 转SiSAD基因烟草的F_v/F_m显著高于转AtFAB2基因烟草。转AtFAB2基因型和野生型烟草的油酸(C18:1)含量随着温度的降低逐渐升高后降低并在0°C时达到最高值; 而转SiSAD基因型烟草C18:1含量持续升高, 并在-2°C时达到最高值, 其含量分别是转AtFAB2基因型和野生型烟草的1.58倍和1.7倍。以上结果表明, 天山雪莲Δ9硬脂酰-ACP脱饱和酶基因SiSAD与拟南芥中同源基因AtFAB2均可以显著增强非低温驯化烟草的抗寒性, 但是SiSAD基因效果显著优于AtFAB2。     

白桦反义CCoAOMT基因调控木质素生物合成

白桦是我国北方重要的造林树种,但其中的高木质素含量严重制约了它作为造纸资源植物的开发利用。本文利用RACE技术获得了白桦咖啡酰辅酶A-3-O-甲基转移酶（CCoAOMT）基因全长ORF序列,并构建了白桦CCoAOMT基因的反义表达载体,通过农杆菌介导法将其导入到白桦中。PCR检测表明反义CCoAOMT基因已整合到白桦的基因组中。对转化植株的半定量PCR检测显示转基因株系的CCoAOMT基因表达量下降;Wiesner染色发现,与野生型相比,转基因植株木质素含量有所下降。对七年生的转基因白桦和野生型对照进行了化学成分分析,结果表明转基因白桦的苯醇抽提物和Klason木质素显著减少,聚戊糖含量升高。上述结果暗示BpCCoAOMT基因参与白桦木质素的合成,反义表达该基因后木质素含量减少,更易于去除。白桦CCoAOMT基因对木质素的合成起重要作用,这为培育低木质素含量的制浆新品种白桦奠定了基础。     

甜菊醇糖苷生物合成及关键酶研究进展

甜菊醇糖苷(steviol glycosides,SGs)是甜叶(Stevia rebaudian)叶片中一类天然甜味剂,具有高甜度、低热量、无毒副作用等特点,同时还具有一定的药理作用.植物体内主要是通过甲基赤藓糖醇(MEP)途径形成祝(牛)儿(牦)牛儿焦磷酸(GGPP),之后该物质在古巴焦磷酸合酶(CPPS)、贝壳杉烯合酶(KS)、贝壳杉烯氧化酶(KO)、糖菊苷转移酶(UGTs)等一系列结构功能各异的酶的作用下最终生成甜菊醇糖苷.SGs生物合成途径的调控及该途径中关键酶的研究已成为目前国内外生物学领域的一大热点.综述了甜叶菊SGs生物合成途径和参与该途径中的关键酶及其基因的研究进展,并展望了其应用前景.     

Functional genomics uncovers three glucosyltransferases involved in the synthesis of the major sweet glucosides of Stevia rebaudiana

Stevia rebaudiana leaves accumulate a mixture of at least eight different steviol glycosides. The pattern of glycosylation heavily influences the taste perception of these intensely sweet compounds. The majority of the glycosides are formed by four glucosylation reactions that start with steviol and end with rebaudioside A. The steps involve the addition of glucose to the C-13 hydroxyl of steviol, the transfer of glucose to the C-2' and C-3' of the 13-O-glucose and the addition of glucose to the hydroxyl of the C-4 carboxyl group. We used our collection of ESTs, an UDP-glucosyltransferase (UGT)-specific electronic probe and key word searches to identify candidate genes resident in our collection. Fifty-four expressed sequence tags (ESTs) belonging to 17 clusters were found using this procedure. We isolated full length cDNAs for 12 of the UGTs, cloned them into an expression vector, and produced recombinant enzymes in Escherichia coli. An in vitro glucosyltransferase activity enzyme assay was conducted using quercetin, kaempferol, steviol, steviolmonoside, steviolbioside, and stevioside as sugar acceptors, and (14)C-UDP-glucose as the donor. Thin layer chromatography was used to separate the products and three of the recombinant enzymes produced labelled products that co-migrated with known standards. HPLC and LC-ES/MS were then used to further define those reaction products. We determined that steviol UGTs behave in a regioselective manner and propose a modified pathway for the synthesis of rebaudioside A from steviol.     

Efficient enzymatic production of rebaudioside A from stevioside

Stevioside and rebaudioside A are the chief diterpene glycosides present in the leaves of Stevia rebaudiana. Rebaudioside A imparts a desirable sweet taste, while stevioside produces a residual bitter aftertaste. Enzymatic synthesis of rebaudioside A from stevioside can increase the ratio of rebaudioside A to stevioside in steviol glycoside products, providing a conceivable strategy to improve the organoleptic properties of steviol glycoside products. Here, we demonstrate the efficient conversion of stevioside to rebaudioside A by coupling the activities of recombinant UDP-glucosyltransferase UGT76G1 from S. rebaudiana and sucrose synthase AtSUS1 from Arabidopsis thaliana. The conversion occurred via regeneration of UDP-glucose by AtSUS1. UDP was applicable as the initial material instead of UDP-glucose for UDP-glucose recycling. The amount of UDP could be greatly reduced in the reaction mixture. Rebaudioside A yield in 30?h with 2.4?mM stevioside, 7.2?mM sucrose, and 0.006?mM UDP was 78%.     

Enrichment of the rebaudioside A concentration in Stevia rebaudiana extract with cyclodextrin glycosyltransferase from Bacillus licheniformis DSM 13

Stevia rebaudiana is a sweet herbaceous perennial plant, which is frequently used in the preparation of plant-based sweeteners. The demand for such sweeteners continues to increase due to purposeful nutrition and modern-day metabolic syndromes. More than 20 types of steviol glycosides provide a sweet taste, which are more than 300 times sweeter than sucrose. They are formed of two main components, namely stevioside and rebaudioside A. Only a handful of studies have dealt with Stevia rebaudiana leaf extracts, the conversion of pure stevioside into the preferred rebaudioside A is more common. The aim of this study was to enrich the rebaudioside A content of Stevia rebaudiana leaf extract using enzymatic bioconversion by applying fermented cyclodextrin glycosyltransferase from Bacillus licheniformis DSM13. Two differently processed plant materials, namely dried and lyophilized Stevia rebaudiana plants, were extracted and compared. Following the bioconversion, the rebaudioside A content was on average doubled. The maximum increase was fivefold with a 70–80% conversion of the stevioside.     

Overexpression of SrUGT76G1 in Stevia alters major steviol glycosides composition towards improved quality

Steviol glycosides (SGs) are extracted from Stevia leaves for use as a natural sweetener. Among SGs, stevioside is most abundant in leaf extracts followed by rebaudioside A (Reb A). However, Reb A is of particular interest because of its sweeter and more pleasant taste compared to stevioside. Therefore, the development of new Stevia varieties with a higher Reb A to stevioside ratio would be desirable for the production of higher quality natural sweeteners. Here, we generated transgenic Stevia plants overexpressing Stevia UDP‐glycosyltransferase 76G1 (SrUGT76G1) that is known to convert stevioside to Reb A through 1,3‐β‐d ‐glucosylation in vitro. Interestingly, by overexpressing SrUGT76G1, the Reb A to stevioside ratio was drastically increased from 0.30 in wild‐type (WT) plants up to 1.55 in transgenic lines without any significant changes in total SGs content. This was contributed by a concurrent increase in Reb A content and a decrease in stevioside content. Additionally, we were able to find an increase in the Reb C to dulcoside A ratio in transgenic lines. Using the glutathione S‐transferase‐tagged SrUGT76G1 recombinant protein for an in vitro glucosyltransferase assay, we further demonstrated that Reb C can be produced from the glucosylation of dulcoside A by SrUGT76G1. Transgenic Stevia plants having higher Reb A to stevioside ratio were visually indistinguishable from WT plants. Taken together, our results demonstrate that the overexpression of SrUGT76G1 in Stevia is an effective way to generate new Stevia varieties with higher proportion of the more preferred Reb A without compromising on plant development.     

Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni responses to salt stress and chitosan elicitor

This study examined the effect of chitosan elicitor with four different concentrations (0, 0.2, 0.4 and 0.6 g/l) on physiological and biochemical properties of stevia under four levels of salinity stress (0, 50, 100, 150 mM level of NaCl). Salt stress caused reduction of chlorophyll a (Chl a), chlorophyll b (Chl b), total chlorophyll, carotenoid and total protein content. The increment of malondialdehyde (MDA) content was not significant in all NaCl levels, while the CAT and POX activities were increased as well as stevioside and rebaudioside A under salinity stress. On one side, chitosan treatments could compensate the reduction of physiological traits such as photosynthetic pigments and protein content. On the other side, chitosan caused multiple increases in malondialdehyde content, antioxidant enzymes activity (catalase and peroxidase), steviol glycosides (stevioside and rebaudioside A) under salt stress. We report for the first time, the potential of chitosan to enhance salinity-tolerant abilities in stevia through increment of the salt-adaptive factors and to diminish harmful damages caused by NaCl stress.     

Utilisation of steviol glycosides from Stevia rebaudiana (Bertoni) by lactobacilli and bifidobacteria in in vitro conditions

In the current study, eight strains of bifidobacteria and seven strains of lactobacilli were tested for their ability to grow in the presence of rebaudioside A and steviol glycosides from the sweetener Natusweet M001 originating from herb Stevia rebaudiana (Bertoni). Stevia is gaining popularity as a natural, non-caloric sugar substitute, and recently, it was allowed as a food additive by European Union too. Utilisation of steviol glycosides by intestinal microbiota suggests that they might have potential prebiotic effect. Based on the evaluation of bacterial density and pH values in our in vitro study, it was found that lactobacilli and bifidobacteria tested were able to utilise steviol glycosides as a carbon source only to a very limited extent. All strains tested showed significantly lower change in the absorbance A₅₄₀ (P?<?0.05) and pH decrease of the growth media as compared with the positive controls (medium containing glucose as a carbon source and de Man Rogosa Sharpe broth). We concluded that a suggested prebiotic effect was not confirmed either in the case of rebaudioside A or in the case of the sweetener Natusweet M001 containing a mixture of steviol glycosides.