Abstract
Main conclusion
Transcriptomic and volatile component analyses showed that high expression levels of genes from the terpenoid backbone biosynthesis pathway and the monoterpene metabolic pathway can strengthen the floral fragrance of tree peony.
Abstract
Floral fragrance is a crucial ornamental trait whose improvement is one of the primary objectives of tree peony breeding. So far, exploration of the floral fragrance of tree peony has focused on the identification of its volatile components, but the molecular mechanisms responsible for their formation remain unclear. Here, we identified 128 volatile components from the petals of tree peony and found that they consisted primarily of terpenes, alcohols, and esters. Based on the distribution pattern of these major fragrance components, 24 tree peony cultivars were classified into 4 types: grassy scent (ocimene), woody scent (longifolene), lily of the valley scent (linalool), and fruity scent (2-ethyl hexanol). We used RNA-seq to explore the mechanistic basis of terpenoid metabolism in tree peony petals with various scents. The expression levels of AACT, HMGR, PMK, DXS, DXR, HDS, HDR, and GGPS, which encode key enzymes of terpenoid backbone biosynthesis, were upregulated in ‘Huangguan’ (strong fragrance) compared to ‘Fengdan’ (faint fragrance). Moreover, the transcript abundance of LIS and MYS, two monoterpene synthase genes, was also enhanced in petals of ‘Huangguan’ compared to those of ‘Fengdan’. Together, these results demonstrate that differences in the expression of genes from the monoterpene synthesis and terpenoid backbone pathways are associated with differences in the fragrance of tree peony. This research provides crucial genetic resources for fragrance improvement and also lays a foundation for further clarification of the mechanisms that underlie tree peony fragrance.
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Abbreviations
- DEG:
-
Differentially expressed gene
- DXP:
-
1-Deoxy-D-xylulose 5-phosphate
- DXS:
-
1-Deoxyxylulose-5-phosphate synthase
- HDS:
-
4-Hydroxy-3-methylbut-2-enyl diphosphate synthase
- HMGR:
-
3-Hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme A reductase
- HMGS:
-
3-Hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme A synthase
- MEP:
-
2-C-Methyl-D-erythritol-4-phosphate
- MVA:
-
Mevalonate
- TPS:
-
Terpene synthase
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Acknowledgements
This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 31800602), the National Key R&D Program of China (2018YFD1000400), and the Outstanding Talent Project of the Organizational Department of the Beijing Municipal Committee (2017000020124G120). The funders had no role in the design of the study, the collection, analysis, and interpretation of data, or the preparation of the manuscript. We would also like to thank Professor Fangyun Cheng of Beijing Forestry University for providing the experimental materials.
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This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 31800602), the National Key R&D Program of China (2018YFD1000400), and the Outstanding Talent Project of the Organizational Department of the Beijing Municipal Committee (2017000020124G120).
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Li, R., Li, Z., Leng, P. et al. Transcriptome sequencing reveals terpene biosynthesis pathway genes accounting for volatile terpene of tree peony. Planta 254, 67 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00425-021-03715-z
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00425-021-03715-z