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Candidate genes involved in tanshinone biosynthesis in hairy roots of Salvia miltiorrhiza revealed by cDNA microarray

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Abstract

Salvia miltiorrhiza is a valuable Chinese herb (Danshen) that is widely used in traditional Chinese medicine. Diterpene quinones, known as tanshinones, are the main bioactive components of S. miltiorrhiza; however, there is only limited information regarding the molecular mechanisms underlying secondary metabolism in this plant. We used cDNA microarray analysis to identify changes in the gene expression profile at different stages of hairy root development in S. miltiorrhiza. A total of 203 genes were singled out from 4,354 cDNA clones on the microarray, and 114 unique differentially expressed cDNA clones were identified: six genes differentially expressed in 45-day hairy root compared with 30-day hairy root; 96 genes differentially expressed in 60-day hairy root compared with 30-day hairy root; and 12 genes unstably expressed at different stages. Among the 96 genes differentially expressed in 60-day hairy root compared with 30-day hairy root, a total of 57 genes were up-regulated, and 26 genes represent 29 metabolism-related enzymes. Copalyl diphosphate synthase, which catalyzes the conversion of the universal diterpenoid precursor (E,E,E)-geranylgeranyl diphosphate to copalyl diphosphate, was up-regulated 6.63 fold, and another six genes involved in tanshinone biosynthesis and eight candidate P450 genes were also differentially expressed. These data provide new insights for further identification of the enzymes involved in tanshinone biosynthesis.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Dr. Deyou Qiu (Chinese academy of Forestry) for his helpful suggestion and Shanghai Biochip Company and National Engineering Research Center for Beijing Biochip Technology for microarray production and hybridization. This work was supported by grants from the Key Project of Chinese National Programs for Fundamental Research and Development (2006CB-504700), Chinese National Programs for High Technology Research and Development (2007AA02Z104) and independent studies supported by the Basic Scientific Research Expenses in China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences (ZZ20090301).

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  1. Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, 100700, China

    Guanghong Cui, Luqi Huang, Xiaojing Tang & Jingxue Zhao

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  1. Guanghong Cui
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  2. Luqi Huang
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  3. Xiaojing Tang
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  4. Jingxue Zhao
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Correspondence to Luqi Huang.

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Cui, G., Huang, L., Tang, X. et al. Candidate genes involved in tanshinone biosynthesis in hairy roots of Salvia miltiorrhiza revealed by cDNA microarray. Mol Biol Rep 38, 2471–2478 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11033-010-0383-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11033-010-0383-9

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