scholarly journals Exploring the Diversity and Regulation of Apocarotenoid Metabolic Pathways in Plants

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiongjie Zheng ◽  
Yu Yang ◽  
Salim Al-Babili

In plants, carotenoids are subjected to enzyme-catalyzed oxidative cleavage reactions as well as to non-enzymatic degradation processes, which produce various carbonyl products called apocarotenoids. These conversions control carotenoid content in different tissues and give rise to apocarotenoid hormones and signaling molecules, which play important roles in plant growth and development, response to environmental stimuli, and in interactions with surrounding organisms. In addition, carotenoid cleavage gives rise to apocarotenoid pigments and volatiles that contribute to the color and flavor of many flowers and several fruits. Some apocarotenoid pigments, such as crocins and bixin, are widely utilized as colorants and additives in food and cosmetic industry and also have health-promoting properties. Considering the importance of this class of metabolites, investigation of apocarotenoid diversity and regulation has increasingly attracted the attention of plant biologists. Here, we provide an update on the plant apocarotenoid biosynthetic pathway, especially highlighting the diversity of the enzyme carotenoid cleavage dioxygenase 4 (CCD4) from different plant species with respect to substrate specificity and regioselectivity, which contribute to the formation of diverse apocarotenoid volatiles and pigments. In addition, we summarize the regulation of apocarotenoid metabolic pathway at transcriptional, post-translational, and epigenetic levels. Finally, we describe inter- and intraspecies variation in apocarotenoid production observed in many important horticulture crops and depict recent progress in elucidating the genetic basis of the natural variation in the composition and amount of apocarotenoids. We propose that the illustration of biochemical, genetic, and evolutionary background of apocarotenoid diversity would not only accelerate the discovery of unknown biosynthetic and regulatory genes of bioactive apocarotenoids but also enable the identification of genetic variation of causal genes for marker-assisted improvement of aroma and color of fruits and vegetables and CRISPR-based next-generation metabolic engineering of high-value apocarotenoids.

Plants ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (7) ◽  
pp. 1386
Author(s):  
Soyun Kim ◽  
Keunho Yun ◽  
Han Yong Park ◽  
Ju Young Ahn ◽  
Ju Yeon Yang ◽  
...  

Red radish (Raphanus sativus L.) cultivars are a rich source of health-promoting anthocyanins and are considered a potential source of natural colorants used in the cosmetic industry. However, the development of red radish cultivars via conventional breeding is very difficult, given the unusual inheritance of the anthocyanin accumulation trait in radishes. Therefore, molecular markers linked with radish color are needed to facilitate radish breeding. Here, we characterized the RsTT8 gene isolated from four radish genotypes with different skin and flesh colors. Sequence analysis of RsTT8 revealed a large number of polymorphisms, including insertion/deletions (InDels), single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), and simple sequence repeats (SSRs), between the red-fleshed and white-fleshed radish cultivars. To develop molecular markers on the basis of these polymorphisms for discriminating between radish genotypes with different colored flesh tissues, we designed four primer sets specific to the RsTT8 promoter, InDel, SSR, and WD40/acidic domain (WD/AD), and tested these primers on a diverse collection of radish lines. Except for the SSR-specific primer set, all primer sets successfully discriminated between red-fleshed and white-fleshed radish lines. Thus, we developed three molecular markers that can be efficiently used for breeding red-fleshed radish cultivars.


2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (7) ◽  
pp. 1490
Author(s):  
Ana Reis ◽  
Sara Rocha ◽  
Victor de Freitas

During the 20th century processed and ready-to-eat foods became routinely consumed resulting in a sharp rise of fat, salt, and sugar intake in people’s diets. Currently, the global incidence of obesity, raised blood lipids, hypertension, and diabetes in an increasingly aged population contributes to the rise of atherothrombotic events and cardiovascular diseases (CVD) mortality. Drug-based therapies are valuable strategies to tackle and help manage the socio-economic impact of atherothrombotic disorders though not without adverse side effects. The inclusion of fresh fruits and vegetables rich in flavonoids to human diets, as recommended by WHO offers a valuable nutritional strategy, alternative to drug-based therapies, to be explored in the prevention and management of atherothrombotic diseases at early stages. Though polyphenols are mostly associated to color and taste in foods, food flavonoids are emerging as modulators of cholesterol biosynthesis, appetite and food intake, blood pressure, platelet function, clot formation, and anti-inflammatory signaling, supporting the health-promoting effects of polyphenol-rich diets in mitigating the impact of risk factors in atherothrombotic disorders and CVD events. Here we overview the current knowledge on the effect of polyphenols particularly of flavonoid intake on the atherothrombotic risk factors and discuss the caveats and challenges involved with current experimental cell-based designs.


Foods ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (7) ◽  
pp. 228 ◽  
Author(s):  
Crawford ◽  
Kahlon ◽  
Wang ◽  
Friedman

Flatbreads are a major food consumed worldwide. To mitigate an undesirable safety aspect of flatbreads that might be associated with the potentially-toxic compound acrylamide, we recently developed recipes using a variety of grains that resulted in the production of low-acrylamide flatbreads. To further enhance the functionality of flatbreads, we have developed, in this work, new experimental flatbreads using potato, quinoa, and wheat flours supplemented with peel powders prepared from commercial nonorganic and organic fruits and vegetables (apples, cherry tomatoes, melons, oranges, pepino melons, sweet potato yams), potato peels, and mushroom powders (Lion’s Mane, Hericium erinaceus; Reishi, Ganoderma lucidum; and Turkey Tail, Trametes versicolor). These additives have all been reported to contain beneficial compositional and health properties. The results of fortification of the baked flatbreads showed either no effect or increases in acrylamide content by unknown mechanisms. Since the additives did not increase the acrylamide content of the quinoa flour flatbreads for the most part, such supplemented quinoa flatbreads have the potential to serve as a nutritional, gluten-free, low-acrylamide, and health-promoting functional food. Mushroom powder-fortified wheat flatbreads with relatively low acrylamide content may also have health benefits.


2012 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 33-39
Author(s):  
Wanda Wadas ◽  
Halina Mioduszewska ◽  
Krzysztof Kalinowski

Effects of selected agronomical factors on the content of health-promoting compounds in spaghetti squash (Cucurbita pepoL. subsp.pepo)The study examined the effects of the sowing date (5, 15 and 25 May) and plant spacing (1 × 0.6 m, 1 × 0.8 m and 1 × 1 m) on the content of carotenoids and L-ascorbic acid in the fruits of two cultivars of spaghetti squash (‘Makaronowa Warszawska' and ‘Pyza’). The field experiment was carried out in central-eastern Poland. Fully mature spaghetti squash fruits were harvested from the beginning of September to the beginning of October. The content of total carotenoids and β-carotene was the greatest in the fruits of plants sown on 15 May. The sowing date did not affect the content of L-ascorbic acid. Increasing the plant spacing from 1 × 0.6 m to 1 × 1 m resulted in an increase of total carotenoid content, particularly for the spaghetti squash sown on 25 May. Plant spacing did not have a significant effect on the content of β-carotene and L-ascorbic acid. Fruits of the ‘Makaronowa Warszawska’ with light orange flesh contained more total carotenoids and β-carotene than fruits of the ‘Pyza’ with cream-coloured flesh. The content of L-ascorbic acid in the fruits of both cultivars did not differ significantly.


1993 ◽  
Vol 93 (3) ◽  
pp. 284-296 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ann Reed Mangels ◽  
Joanne M Holden ◽  
Gary R Beecher ◽  
Michele R Forman ◽  
Elaine Lanza

1971 ◽  
Vol 58 (5) ◽  
pp. 274-274 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. F. Springer ◽  
S. V. Huprikar ◽  
H. Tegtmeyer

2013 ◽  
Vol 79 (11) ◽  
pp. 3336-3345 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jinsol Heo ◽  
Se Hyeuk Kim ◽  
Pyung Cheon Lee

ABSTRACTCarotenoid cleavage dioxygenases (CCDs) are enzymes that catalyze the oxidative cleavage of carotenoids at a specific double bond to generate apocarotenoids. In this study, we investigated the activity and substrate preferences of NSC3, a CCD ofNostocsp. strain PCC 7120,in vivoandin vitrousing natural and nonnatural carotenoid structures. NSC3 cleaved β-apo-8′-carotenal at 3 positions, C-13C-14, C-15C-15′, and C-13′C-14′, revealing a unique cleavage pattern. NSC3 cleaves the natural structure of carotenoids 4,4′-diaponeurosporene, 4,4′-diaponeurosporen-4′-al, 4,4′-diaponeurosporen-4′-oic acid, 4,4′-diapotorulene, and 4,4′-diapotorulen-4′-al to generate novel cleavage products (apo-14′-diaponeurosporenal, apo-13′-diaponeurosporenal, apo-10′-diaponeurosporenal, apo-14′-diapotorulenal, and apo-10′-diapotorulenal, respectively). The study of carotenoids with natural or nonnatural structures produced by using synthetic modules could provide information valuable for understanding the cleavage reactions or substrate preferences of other CCDsin vivoandin vitro.


Antioxidants ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. 1681
Author(s):  
Liliana Mihalcea ◽  
Mihaela Turturică ◽  
Elena Iulia Cucolea ◽  
George-Mădălin Dănilă ◽  
Loredana Dumitrașcu ◽  
...  

The processing of sea buckthorn generates a significant amount of pomace, seeds and skin considered valuable sources of health-promoting macromolecules, such as carotenoids, pectin, flavonoids, phytosterols, polyunsaturated fatty acids and tocopherols. In this study, the bioactives from sea buckthorn pomace (SBP) were extracted using supercritical carbon dioxide (SFE-CO2), at different temperatures and pressures, allowing for obtaining four fractions according to separators (S40 and S45). The highest carotenoid content of 396.12 ± 1.02 mg/g D.W. was found in the S40 fraction, at extraction parameters of 35 °C/45 MPa, yielding an antioxidant activity of 32.10 ± 0.17 mMol TEAC/g D.W. The representative carotenoids in the extract were zeaxanthin, β-carotene and lycopene, whereas all enriched SFE-CO2 extracts contained α-, β- and δ-tocopherol, with α-tocopherol representing around 82% of all fractions. β-sitosterol was the major phytosterol in the fractions derived from S45. All fractions contained significant fatty acids, with a predominance of linoleic acid. Remarkably, the enriched extracts showed a significant palmitoleic acid content, ranging from 53 to 65 µg/g. S40 extracts showed a good antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus and Aeromonas hydrophila ATCC 7966, whereas S45 extracts showed a growth inhibition rate of 100% against Aspergillus niger after three days of growth. Our results are valuable, and they allow identifying the different profiles of extracts with many different applications in food, pharmaceutics, nutraceuticals and cosmeceuticals.


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