De novo transcriptome sequence of Senna tora provides insights into anthraquinone biosynthesis

PLoS One. 2020 May 7;15(5):e0225564. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0225564. eCollection 2020.

Abstract

Senna tora is an annual herb with rich source of anthraquinones that have tremendous pharmacological properties. However, there is little mention of genetic information for this species, especially regarding the biosynthetic pathways of anthraquinones. To understand the key genes and regulatory mechanism of anthraquinone biosynthesis pathways, we performed spatial and temporal transcriptome sequencing of S. tora using short RNA sequencing (RNA-Seq) and long-read isoform sequencing (Iso-Seq) technologies, and generated two unigene sets composed of 118,635 and 39,364, respectively. A comprehensive functional annotation and classification with multiple public databases identified array of genes involved in major secondary metabolite biosynthesis pathways and important transcription factor (TF) families (MYB, MYB-related, AP2/ERF, C2C2-YABBY, and bHLH). Differential expression analysis indicated that the expression level of genes involved in anthraquinone biosynthetic pathway regulates differently depending on the degree of tissues and seeds development. Furthermore, we identified that the amount of anthraquinone compounds were greater in late seeds than early ones. In conclusion, these results provide a rich resource for understanding the anthraquinone metabolism in S. tora.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Anthraquinones / metabolism*
  • Gene Expression Regulation, Plant
  • Plant Leaves / genetics
  • Plant Leaves / growth & development
  • Plant Proteins / genetics
  • Plant Roots / genetics
  • Plant Roots / growth & development
  • RNA, Plant / genetics
  • RNA-Seq
  • Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction
  • Seeds / genetics*
  • Seeds / growth & development
  • Senna Extract / metabolism*
  • Senna Plant / genetics*
  • Senna Plant / metabolism*
  • Transcription Factors / genetics
  • Transcriptome*

Substances

  • Anthraquinones
  • Plant Proteins
  • RNA, Plant
  • Transcription Factors
  • 9,10-anthraquinone
  • Senna Extract

Grants and funding

SHK received the award, Grant numbers: PJ013818 and PJ010457, Full name of each funder: National Institute of Agricultural Sciences and Cooperative Research Program for Agriculture Science and Technology Development, URL: www.naas.go.kr and www.rda.go.kr, No: The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.