| Title: | Sesquiterpene glucosylation mediated by glucosyltransferase UGT91Q2 is involved in the modulation of cold stress tolerance in tea plants |
| Author(s): | Zhao M; Zhang N; Gao T; Jin J; Jing T; Wang J; Wu Y; Wan X; Schwab W; Song C; |
| Address: | "State Key Laboratory of Tea Plant Biology and Utilization, International Joint Laboratory on Tea Chemistry and Health Effects, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei, Anhui, 230036, China. Biotechnology of Natural Products, Technische Universitat Munchen, Liesel-Beckmann-Str. 1, Freising, 85354, Germany" |
| ISSN/ISBN: | 1469-8137 (Electronic) 0028-646X (Linking) |
| Abstract: | "Plants produce and emit terpenes, including sesquiterpenes, during growth and development, which serve different functions in plants. The sesquiterpene nerolidol has health-promoting properties and adds a floral scent to plants. However, the glycosylation mechanism of nerolidol and its biological roles in plants remained unknown. Sesquiterpene UDP-glucosyltransferases were selected by using metabolites-genes correlation analysis, and its roles in response to cold stress were studied. We discovered the first plant UGT (UGT91Q2) in tea plant, whose expression is strongly induced by cold stress and which specifically catalyzes the glucosylation of nerolidol. The accumulation of nerolidol glucoside was consistent with the expression level of UGT91Q2 in response to cold stress, as well as in different tea cultivars. The reactive oxygen species (ROS) scavenging capacity of nerolidol glucoside was significantly higher than that of free nerolidol. Down-regulation of UGT91Q2 resulted in reduced accumulation of nerolidol glucoside, ROS scavenging capacity and tea plant cold tolerance. Tea plants absorbed airborne nerolidol and converted it to its glucoside, subsequently enhancing tea plant cold stress tolerance. Nerolidol plays a role in response to cold stress as well as in triggering plant-plant communication in response to cold stress. Our findings reveal previously unidentified roles of volatiles in response to abiotic stress in plants" |
| Keywords: | "*Camellia sinensis/enzymology Cold-Shock Response Gene Expression Regulation, Plant *Glucosyltransferases/genetics Plant Proteins/genetics/metabolism *Sesquiterpenes Stress, Physiological Tea Camellia sinensis UDP-glucosyltransferase cold tolerance neroli;" |
| Notes: | "MedlineZhao, Mingyue Zhang, Na Gao, Ting Jin, Jieyang Jing, Tingting Wang, Jingming Wu, Yi Wan, Xiaochun Schwab, Wilfried Song, Chuankui eng Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't England 2019/12/13 New Phytol. 2020 Apr; 226(2):362-372. doi: 10.1111/nph.16364. Epub 2020 Jan 2" |
