Light plays a dominant role in the biosynthesis and accumulation of photosynthetic products. However, the metabolism and translocation of photosynthetic products in plants under different light spectra remain elusive. In this study, tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) seedlings were treated with different light spectra delivered by light-emitting diodes (LEDs) with the same photosynthetic photon flux density at 300 μmol m-2 s-1, including monochromatic red (660 nm, R), blue (450 nm, B), sun-like white (W, 380-780 nm), or a combination of R and B lights (R:B = 1:1, RB). Compared with W, the biomass distribution ratio for leaves under R, B, and RB decreased by 5.01-9.53%, while the ratio for stems and roots increased by 3.71-6.92% and 0.14-2.81%, respectively. The photosynthetic carbon distribution expressed as 13C enrichment was higher in stems and roots under RB and R, while B led to more 13C transported from leaves and enriched in stems when compared with W. Meanwhile, RB led to significant increases in the activities of phosphate synthase (SPS), sucrose synthase (SS), vacuolar acid invertase (VI), and neutral invertase (NI). The R was more efficient in increasing the activity of SPS and SS, while B was more effective in promoting the activity of VI and NI. The transcript levels of SPS, SS3, NI6, and VI were upregulated under R, B, and RB. However, the transcript patterns of SPS, SS3, NI6, and VI were not consistent with the changes in their encoded enzymes, especially the transcript patterns of SPS and SS3. Our study suggests that the red- and blue-light-induced long-distance and short-distance transport of photosynthetic products in plants, respectively, might result from different regulation of sucrose-metabolizing enzymes from transcriptional and post-transcriptional levels.
Keywords: carbon translocation; gene expression; light quality; sucrose-metabolizing enzymes; tomato.