Carbon monoxide (CO) acts as an important signal in many physiological responses in plants, but its role in plant secondary metabolism is still unknown. Nicotine is the main alkaloid generated in tobacco and the plant hormone jasmonic acid (JA) has previously been reported to efficiently induce its biosynthesis. Whether and how CO interacts with JA to regulate nicotine biosynthesis in tobacco remains elusive. In this study, we demonstrate that high temperature (HT) induces quick accumulation of nicotine in tobacco roots, combined with an increase in CO and JA concentration. Suppressing CO generation reduced both JA and nicotine biosynthesis, whereas exogenous application of CO increased JA and nicotine content. CO causes an increased expression of NtPMT1 (a key nicotine biosynthesis enzyme), via promoting NtMYC2a binding to the G-box region of its promoter, leading to heightened nicotine levels under HT conditions. These data suggest a novel function for CO in stimulating nicotine biosynthesis in tobacco under HT stress, through a JA signal.
Keywords: carbon monoxide; high temperature; jasmonic acid; nicotine; tobacco.