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Rao S, Cao H, O'Hanna FJ, Zhou X, Lui A, Wrightstone E, Fish T, Yang Y, Thannhauser T, Cheng L, Dudareva N, Li L. Nudix hydrolase 23 post-translationally regulates carotenoid biosynthesis in plants. Plant Cell 2024; 36:1868-1891. [PMID: 38299382 DOI: 10.1093/plcell/koae030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2023] [Revised: 12/12/2023] [Accepted: 01/10/2024] [Indexed: 02/02/2024]
Abstract
Carotenoids are essential for photosynthesis and photoprotection. Plants must evolve multifaceted regulatory mechanisms to control carotenoid biosynthesis. However, the regulatory mechanisms and the regulators conserved among plant species remain elusive. Phytoene synthase (PSY) catalyzes the highly regulated step of carotenogenesis and geranylgeranyl diphosphate synthase (GGPPS) acts as a hub to interact with GGPP-utilizing enzymes for the synthesis of specific downstream isoprenoids. Here, we report a function of Nudix hydrolase 23 (NUDX23), a Nudix domain-containing protein, in post-translational regulation of PSY and GGPPS for carotenoid biosynthesis. NUDX23 expresses highly in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) leaves. Overexpression of NUDX23 significantly increases PSY and GGPPS protein levels and carotenoid production, whereas knockout of NUDX23 dramatically reduces their abundances and carotenoid accumulation in Arabidopsis. NUDX23 regulates carotenoid biosynthesis via direct interactions with PSY and GGPPS in chloroplasts, which enhances PSY and GGPPS protein stability in a large PSY-GGPPS enzyme complex. NUDX23 was found to co-migrate with PSY and GGPPS proteins and to be required for the enzyme complex assembly. Our findings uncover a regulatory mechanism underlying carotenoid biosynthesis in plants and offer promising genetic tools for developing carotenoid-enriched food crops.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sombir Rao
- Robert W. Holley Center for Agriculture and Health, USDA-ARS, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA
- Plant Breeding and Genetics Section, School of Integrative Plant Science, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA
| | - Hongbo Cao
- Robert W. Holley Center for Agriculture and Health, USDA-ARS, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA
- College of Horticulture, Hebei Agricultural University, Baoding, Hebei 071000, China
| | - Franz Joseph O'Hanna
- Robert W. Holley Center for Agriculture and Health, USDA-ARS, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA
| | - Xuesong Zhou
- Robert W. Holley Center for Agriculture and Health, USDA-ARS, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA
- Plant Breeding and Genetics Section, School of Integrative Plant Science, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA
| | - Andy Lui
- Robert W. Holley Center for Agriculture and Health, USDA-ARS, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA
- Plant Breeding and Genetics Section, School of Integrative Plant Science, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA
| | - Emalee Wrightstone
- Robert W. Holley Center for Agriculture and Health, USDA-ARS, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA
- Plant Breeding and Genetics Section, School of Integrative Plant Science, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA
| | - Tara Fish
- Robert W. Holley Center for Agriculture and Health, USDA-ARS, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA
| | - Yong Yang
- Robert W. Holley Center for Agriculture and Health, USDA-ARS, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA
| | - Theodore Thannhauser
- Robert W. Holley Center for Agriculture and Health, USDA-ARS, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA
| | - Lailiang Cheng
- Horticulture Section, School of Integrative Plant Science, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA
| | - Natalia Dudareva
- Department of Biochemistry, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907-2063, USA
- Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USA
- Purdue Center for Plant Biology, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USA
| | - Li Li
- Robert W. Holley Center for Agriculture and Health, USDA-ARS, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA
- Plant Breeding and Genetics Section, School of Integrative Plant Science, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA
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Iglesias-Sanchez A, Navarro-Carcelen J, Morelli L, Rodriguez-Concepcion M. Arabidopsis FIBRILLIN6 influences carotenoid biosynthesis by directly promoting phytoene synthase activity. Plant Physiol 2024; 194:1662-1673. [PMID: 37966976 PMCID: PMC10904322 DOI: 10.1093/plphys/kiad613] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/12/2023] [Revised: 09/12/2023] [Accepted: 10/18/2023] [Indexed: 11/17/2023]
Abstract
Carotenoids are health-promoting plastidial isoprenoids with essential functions in plants as photoprotectants and photosynthetic pigments in chloroplasts. They also accumulate in specialized plastids named chromoplasts, providing color to non-photosynthetic tissues such as flower petals and ripe fruit. Carotenoid accumulation in chromoplasts requires specialized structures and proteins such as fibrillins (FBNs). The FBN family includes structural components of carotenoid sequestering structures in chromoplasts and members with metabolic roles in chloroplasts and other plastid types. However, the association of FBNs with carotenoids in plastids other than chromoplasts has remained unexplored. Here, we show that Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) FBN6 interacts with phytoene synthase (PSY), the first enzyme of the carotenoid pathway. FBN6, but not FBN4 (a FBN that does not interact with PSY), enhances the activity of plant PSY (but not of the bacterial PSY crtB) in Escherichia coli cells. Overexpression of FBN6 in Nicotiana benthamiana leaves results in a higher production of phytoene, the product of PSY activity, whereas loss of FBN6 activity in Arabidopsis mutants dramatically reduces the production of carotenoids during seedling de-etiolation and after exposure to high light. Our work hence demonstrates that FBNs promote not only the accumulation of carotenoids in chromoplasts but also their biosynthesis in chloroplasts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ariadna Iglesias-Sanchez
- Institute for Plant Molecular and Cell Biology (IBMCP), CSIC-Universitat Politècnica de València, Valencia 46022, Spain
- Centre for Research in Agricultural Genomics (CRAG) CSIC-IRTA-UAB-UB, Campus UAB Bellaterra, Barcelona 08193, Spain
| | - Juan Navarro-Carcelen
- Institute for Plant Molecular and Cell Biology (IBMCP), CSIC-Universitat Politècnica de València, Valencia 46022, Spain
| | - Luca Morelli
- Institute for Plant Molecular and Cell Biology (IBMCP), CSIC-Universitat Politècnica de València, Valencia 46022, Spain
- Centre for Research in Agricultural Genomics (CRAG) CSIC-IRTA-UAB-UB, Campus UAB Bellaterra, Barcelona 08193, Spain
| | - Manuel Rodriguez-Concepcion
- Institute for Plant Molecular and Cell Biology (IBMCP), CSIC-Universitat Politècnica de València, Valencia 46022, Spain
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Liang MH, Li XY. Involvement of Transcription Factors and Regulatory Proteins in the Regulation of Carotenoid Accumulation in Plants and Algae. J Agric Food Chem 2023; 71:18660-18673. [PMID: 38053506 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jafc.3c05662] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/07/2023]
Abstract
Carotenoids are essential for photosynthesis and photoprotection in photosynthetic organisms, which are widely used in food coloring, feed additives, nutraceuticals, cosmetics, and pharmaceuticals. Carotenoid biofortification in crop plants or algae has been considered as a sustainable strategy to improve human nutrition and health. However, the regulatory mechanisms of carotenoid accumulation are still not systematic and particularly scarce in algae. This article focuses on the regulatory mechanisms of carotenoid accumulation in plants and algae through regulatory factors (transcription factors and regulatory proteins), demonstrating the complexity of homeostasis regulation of carotenoids, mainly including transcriptional regulation as the primary mechanism, subsequent post-translational regulation, and cross-linking with other metabolic processes. Different organs of plants and different plant/algal species usually have specific regulatory mechanisms for the biosynthesis, storage, and degradation of carotenoids in response to the environmental and developmental signals. In plants and algae, regulators such as MYB, bHLH, MADS, bZIP, AP2/ERF, WRKY, and orange proteins can be involved in the regulation of carotenoid metabolism. And many more regulators, regulatory networks, and mechanisms need to be explored. Our paper will provide a basis for multitarget or multipathway engineering for carotenoid biofortification in plants and algae.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ming-Hua Liang
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biotechnology for Plant Development, Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Subtropical Biodiversity and Biomonitoring, Institute of Ecological Science, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
| | - Xian-Yi Li
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biotechnology for Plant Development, Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Subtropical Biodiversity and Biomonitoring, Institute of Ecological Science, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
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