title: A Geranylfarnesyl Diphosphate Synthase Provides the Precursor for Sesterterpenoid (C25) Formation in the Glandular Trichomes of the Mint Species Leucosceptrum canum.
abstract: Plant sesterterpenoids, an important class of terpenoids, are widely distributed in various plants, including food crops. However, little is known about their biosynthesis. Here, we cloned and functionally characterized a plant geranylfarnesyl diphosphate synthase (Lc-GFDPS), the enzyme producing the C25 prenyl diphosphate precursor to all sesterterpenoids, from the glandular trichomes of the woody plant Leucosceptrum canum. GFDPS catalyzed the formation of GFDP after expression in Escherichia coli. Overexpressing GFDPS in Arabidopsis thaliana also gave an extract catalyzing GFDP formation. GFDPS was strongly expressed in glandular trichomes, and its transcript profile was completely in accordance with the sesterterpenoid accumulation pattern. GFDPS is localized to the plastids, and inhibitor studies indicated its use of isoprenyl diphosphate substrates supplied by the 2-C-methyl-D-erythritol 4-phosphate pathway. Application of a jasmonate defense hormone induced GFDPS transcript and sesterterpenoid accumulation, while reducing feeding and growth of the generalist insect Spodoptera exigua, suggesting that these C25 terpenoids play a defensive role. Phylogenetic analysis suggested that GFDPS probably evolved from plant geranylgeranyl diphosphate synthase under the influence of positive selection. The isolation of GFDPS provides a model for investigating sesterterpenoid formation in other species and a tool for manipulating the formation of this group in plants and other organisms.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Phytochemistry and Plant Resources in West China, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650201, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Yan
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7020-6341
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Phytochemistry and Plant Resources in West China, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650201, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Shi-Hong
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Luo
authors.affiliation: Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology, D-07745 Jena, Germany.
authors.forename: Axel
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Schmidt
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Plant Genomics and National Center for Plant Gene Research, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Guo-Dong
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9917-0656
authors.initials: GD
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Economic Plants and Biotechnology, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650201, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Gui-Ling
authors.initials: GL
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.affiliation: Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology, D-07745 Jena, Germany.
authors.forename: Marcus
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1003-4071
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Grant
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Phytochemistry and Plant Resources in West China, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650201, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Ce
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Kuang
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Phytochemistry and Plant Resources in West China, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650201, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Min-Jie
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Phytochemistry and Plant Resources in West China, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650201, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Shu-Xi
authors.initials: SX
authors.lastname: Jing
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Phytochemistry and Plant Resources in West China, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650201, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Chun-Huan
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology, D-07745 Jena, Germany.
authors.forename: Bernd
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4788-1565
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Schneider
authors.affiliation: Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology, D-07745 Jena, Germany.
authors.forename: Jonathan
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-1812-1551
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gershenzon
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Phytochemistry and Plant Resources in West China, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650201, P.R. China shli@mail.kib.ac.cn.
authors.forename: Sheng-Hong
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0001-5404-893X
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Li
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D004896:Erythritol / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000378:metabolism; D051231:Farnesyltranstransferase / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D027541:Mentha / Q000737:chemistry / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000235:genetics; D009928:Organ Specificity; D010802:Phylogeny; D036226:Seedlings / Q000737:chemistry / Q000201:enzymology / Q000235:genetics; D016415:Sequence Alignment; D018411:Spodoptera / Q000502:physiology*; D013403:Sugar Phosphates / Q000378:metabolism; D013729:Terpenes / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D064201:Trichomes / Q000737:chemistry / Q000201:enzymology / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: C114232:2-C-methylerythritol 4-phosphate; D013403:Sugar Phosphates; D013729:Terpenes; D051231:Farnesyltranstransferase; D004896:Erythritol