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Transgenic soybean plants overexpressing O-acetylserine sulfhydrylase accumulate enhanced levels of cysteine and Bowman–Birk protease inhibitor in seeds

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Abstract

Soybeans provide an excellent source of protein in animal feed. Soybean protein quality can be enhanced by increasing the concentration of sulfur-containing amino acids. Previous attempts to increase the concentration of sulfur-containing amino acids through the expression of heterologous proteins have met with limited success. Here, we report a successful strategy to increase the cysteine content of soybean seed through the overexpression of a key sulfur assimilatory enzyme. We have generated several transgenic soybean plants that overexpress a cytosolic isoform of O-acetylserine sulfhydrylase (OASS). These transgenic soybean plants exhibit a four- to tenfold increase in OASS activity when compared with non-transformed wild-type. The OASS activity in the transgenic soybeans was significantly higher at all the stages of seed development. Unlike the non-transformed soybean plants, there was no marked decrease in the OASS activity even at later stages of seed development. Overexpression of cytosolic OASS resulted in a 58–74% increase in protein-bound cysteine levels compared with non-transformed wild-type soybean seeds. A 22–32% increase in the free cysteine levels was also observed in transgenic soybeans overexpressing OASS. Furthermore, these transgenic soybean plants showed a marked increase in the accumulation of Bowman–Birk protease inhibitor, a cysteine-rich protein. The overall increase in soybean total cysteine content (both free and protein-bound) satisfies the recommended levels required for the optimal growth of monogastric animals.

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Abbreviations

OASS:

O-acetylserine sulfhydrylase

SAT:

Serine acetyltransferase

HSD:

Homoserine dehydrogenase

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Acknowledgments

We thank the University of Missouri Plant Transformation Core Facility for the production of transgenic soybean lines. Work in the Jez lab was funded by a US Department of Agriculture grant (NRI-2005-02518) to J.M.J., M.J. and A.C.S. were also supported in part by American Society of Plant Biologists Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowships. Product names are necessary to report factually on available data; however, the University of Missouri and the USDA neither guarantee nor warrant the standard of product, and the use of the name by the University of Missouri and the USDA implies no approval of the product to the exclusion of others that may be suitable.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Plant Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, 65211, USA

    Won-Seok Kim, Demosthenis Chronis & Hari B. Krishnan

  2. Department of Biology, Washington University, St. Louis, MO, 63130, USA

    Matthew Juergens, Amy C. Schroeder & Joseph M. Jez

  3. Department of Statistics, North Dakota State University, Fargo, ND, 58108, USA

    Seung Won Hyun

  4. Plant Genetics Research Unit, United States Department of Agriculture/Agricultural Research Service, 108 Curtis Hall, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, 65211, USA

    Hari B. Krishnan

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  1. Won-Seok Kim
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Correspondence to Hari B. Krishnan.

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Kim, WS., Chronis, D., Juergens, M. et al. Transgenic soybean plants overexpressing O-acetylserine sulfhydrylase accumulate enhanced levels of cysteine and Bowman–Birk protease inhibitor in seeds. Planta 235, 13–23 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00425-011-1487-8

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