Metabolic Adaptation in Plants

A special issue of Metabolites (ISSN 2218-1989). This special issue belongs to the section "Plant Metabolism".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 November 2023) | Viewed by 7963

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
School of Tropical Crops, Hainan University, Haikou, China
Interests: plant metabolism; phytohormone; genomics; rice; passion fuit

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The wide array of plant metabolites represents a world of rich biological complexity and significance. These molecules represent an essential source to meet the demands for adaptation to the environment. Plant metabolism has been an abundant area of genetics, biochemistry, molecular biology, and synthetic biology. Interestingly, along with their dramatic responses to changing environments, metabolites, including but not limited to phytohormones, could have a hand in the adaptation of plants to biotic and abiotic stresses. This Special Issue of Metabolites is dedicated to studies exploring the latest discoveries and innovations in metabolic adaptation. This multi-disciplinary field of research involves chemists, biochemists, geneticists, and plant scientists, all of whom have contributed to our current understanding of these materials.

We are calling for manuscripts that address the following topics:

  1. Chemistry of plant metabolites;
  2. Molecular mechanisms of metabolic responses to stresses, including metabolite synthesis, transport, and regulation;
  3. Structural basis underlying recognition and signaling transduction of metabolites between individuals or species;
  4. Metabolic diversity of plants upon stresses and their genetic determination;
  5. Application of bioinformatics for production of plant metabolites;
  6. Biotechnological approaches to enhancing the production of plant metabolites;
  7. Synthetic biology studies on heterologous expression plant metabolites.

Dr. Chuanying Fang
Guest Editor

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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19 pages, 3900 KiB  
Article
Metabolomics and Transcriptomics Revealed a Comprehensive Understanding of the Biochemical and Genetic Mechanisms Underlying the Color Variations in Chrysanthemums
by Di Wu, Fengchao Zhuang, Jiarui Wang, Ruiqi Gao, Qiunan Zhang, Xiao Wang, Guochao Zhang, Minghui Fang, Yang Zhang, Yuhua Li, Le Guan and Yanqiang Gao
Metabolites 2023, 13(6), 742; https://doi.org/10.3390/metabo13060742 - 10 Jun 2023
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1691
Abstract
Flower color is an important characteristic of ornamental plants and is determined by various chemical components, including anthocyanin. In the present study, combined metabolomics and transcriptomics analysis was used to explore color variations in the chrysanthemums of three cultivars, of which the color [...] Read more.
Flower color is an important characteristic of ornamental plants and is determined by various chemical components, including anthocyanin. In the present study, combined metabolomics and transcriptomics analysis was used to explore color variations in the chrysanthemums of three cultivars, of which the color of JIN is yellow, FEN is pink, and ZSH is red. A total of 29 different metabolites, including nine anthocyanins, were identified in common in the three cultivars. Compared with the light-colored cultivars, all of the nine anthocyanin contents were found to be up-regulated in the dark-colored ones. The different contents of pelargonidin, cyanidin, and their derivates were found to be the main reason for color variations. Transcriptomic analysis showed that the color difference was closely related to anthocyanin biosynthesis. The expression level of anthocyanin structural genes, including DFR, ANS, 3GT, 3MaT1, and 3MaT2, was in accordance with the flower color depth. This finding suggests that anthocyanins may be a key factor in color variations among the studied cultivars. On this basis, two special metabolites were selected as biomarkers to assist in chrysanthemum breeding for color selection. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Metabolic Adaptation in Plants)
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14 pages, 3108 KiB  
Article
Integrated Metabolome and Transcriptome during Fruit Development Reveal Metabolic Differences and Molecular Basis between Lycium barbarum and Lycium ruthenicum
by Ziyang Xie, Yu Luo, Changjian Zhang, Wei An, Jun Zhou, Cheng Jin, Yuanyuan Zhang and Jianhua Zhao
Metabolites 2023, 13(6), 680; https://doi.org/10.3390/metabo13060680 - 23 May 2023
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 1809
Abstract
Wolfberry (Lycium barbarum) is a traditional cash crop in China and is well-known worldwide for its outstanding nutritional and medicinal value. Lycium ruthenicum is a close relative of Lycium barbarum but differs significantly in size, color, flavor and nutritional composition. To [...] Read more.
Wolfberry (Lycium barbarum) is a traditional cash crop in China and is well-known worldwide for its outstanding nutritional and medicinal value. Lycium ruthenicum is a close relative of Lycium barbarum but differs significantly in size, color, flavor and nutritional composition. To date, the metabolic differences between the fruits of the two wolfberry varieties and the genetic basis behind them are unclear. Here, we compared metabolome and transcriptome data of two kinds of wolfberry fruits at five stages of development. Metabolome results show that amino acids, vitamins and flavonoids had the same accumulation pattern in various developmental stages of fruit but that Lycium ruthenicum accumulated more metabolites than Lycium barbarum during the same developmental stage, including L-glutamate, L-proline, L-serine, abscisic acid (ABA), sucrose, thiamine, naringenin and quercetin. Based on the metabolite and gene networks, many key genes that may be involved in the flavonoid synthesis pathway in wolfberry were identified, including PAL, C4H, 4CL, CHS, CHI, F3H, F3’H and FLS. The expression of these genes was significantly higher in Lycium ruthenicum than in Lycium barbarum, indicating that the difference in the expression of these genes was the main reason for the variation in flavonoid accumulation between Lycium barbarum and Lycium ruthenicum. Taken together, our results reveal the genetic basis of the difference in metabolomics between Lycium barbarum and Lycium ruthenicum and provide new insights into the flavonoid synthesis of wolfberry. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Metabolic Adaptation in Plants)
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13 pages, 1725 KiB  
Article
Overexpression of SQUALENE SYNTHASE Reduces Nicotiana benthamiana Resistance against Phytophthora infestans
by Ke-Ke Fu, Junhao Liang, Wei Wan, Xiangfeng Jing, Hongjie Feng, Yanling Cai and Shaoqun Zhou
Metabolites 2023, 13(2), 261; https://doi.org/10.3390/metabo13020261 - 11 Feb 2023
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1910
Abstract
Plant triterpenoids play a critical role in plant resistance against Phytophthora infestans de Bary, the causal pathogen of potato and tomato late blight. However, different triterpenoids could have contrasting functions on plant resistance against P. infestans. In this study, we targeted the [...] Read more.
Plant triterpenoids play a critical role in plant resistance against Phytophthora infestans de Bary, the causal pathogen of potato and tomato late blight. However, different triterpenoids could have contrasting functions on plant resistance against P. infestans. In this study, we targeted the key biosynthetic gene of all plant triterpenoids, SQUALENE SYNTHASE (SQS), to examine the function of this gene in plant–P. infestans interactions. A post-inoculation, time-course gene expression analysis revealed that SQS expression was induced in Nicotiana benthamiana but was transiently suppressed in Solanum lycopersicum. Consistent with the host-specific changes in SQS expression, concentrations of major triterpenoid compounds were only induced in S. lycopersicum. A stable overexpression of SQS in N. benthamiana reduced plant resistance against P. infestans and induced the hyperaccumulation of stigmasterol. A comparative transcriptomics analysis of the transgenic lines showed that diverse plant physiological processes were influenced by SQS overexpression, suggesting that phytosterol content regulation may not be the sole mechanism through which SQS promotes plant susceptibility towards P. infestans. This study provides experimental evidence for the host-specific transcriptional regulation and function of SQS in plant interactions with P. infestans, offering a novel perspective in examining the quantitative disease resistance against late blight. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Metabolic Adaptation in Plants)
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Review

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14 pages, 1371 KiB  
Review
Jasmonates Coordinate Secondary with Primary Metabolism
by Chen Luo, Jianfang Qiu, Yu Zhang, Mengya Li and Pei Liu
Metabolites 2023, 13(9), 1008; https://doi.org/10.3390/metabo13091008 - 13 Sep 2023
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 1957
Abstract
Jasmonates (JAs), including jasmonic acid (JA), its precursor 12-oxo-phytodienoic acid (OPDA) and its derivatives jasmonoyl-isoleucine (JA-Ile), methyl jasmonate (MeJA), cis-jasmone (CJ) and other oxylipins, are important in the regulation of a range of ecological interactions of plants with their abiotic and particularly [...] Read more.
Jasmonates (JAs), including jasmonic acid (JA), its precursor 12-oxo-phytodienoic acid (OPDA) and its derivatives jasmonoyl-isoleucine (JA-Ile), methyl jasmonate (MeJA), cis-jasmone (CJ) and other oxylipins, are important in the regulation of a range of ecological interactions of plants with their abiotic and particularly their biotic environments. Plant secondary/specialized metabolites play critical roles in implementing these ecological functions of JAs. Pathway and transcriptional regulation analyses have established a central role of JA-Ile-mediated core signaling in promoting the biosynthesis of a great diversity of secondary metabolites. Here, we summarized the advances in JAs-induced secondary metabolites, particularly in secondary metabolites induced by OPDA and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) induced by CJ through signaling independent of JA-Ile. The roles of JAs in integrating and coordinating the primary and secondary metabolism, thereby orchestrating plant growth–defense tradeoffs, were highlighted and discussed. Finally, we provided perspectives on the improvement of the adaptability and resilience of plants to changing environments and the production of valuable phytochemicals by exploiting JAs-regulated secondary metabolites. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Metabolic Adaptation in Plants)
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