Metabolic engineering of crocin biosynthesis in nicotiana species
Issue date
2022Author
Ahrazem, Oussama
Huang, Xin
Rubio-Moraga, Angela
Gómez-Gómez, Lourdes
Suggested citation
Ahrazem, Oussama;
Zhu, Changfu;
Huang, Xin;
Rubio-Moraga, Angela;
Capell Capell, Teresa;
Christou, Paul;
Gómez-Gómez, Lourdes;
.
(2022)
.
Metabolic engineering of crocin biosynthesis in nicotiana species.
Frontiers in plant science, 2022, vol. 13, núm. 861140, p. 1-11.
https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2022.861140.
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Show full item recordAbstract
Crocins are high-value soluble pigments that are used as colorants and supplements,
their presence in nature is extremely limited and, consequently, the high cost of these
metabolites hinders their use by other sectors, such as the pharmaceutical and cosmetic
industries. The carotenoid cleavage dioxygenase 2L (CsCCD2L) is the key enzyme
in the biosynthetic pathway of crocins in Crocus sativus. In this study, CsCCD2L
was introduced into Nicotiana tabacum and Nicotiana glauca for the production of
crocins. In addition, a chimeric construct containing the Brevundimonas sp. β-carotene
hydroxylase (BrCrtZ), the Arabidopsis thaliana ORANGE mutant gene (AtOrMut), and
CsCCD2L was also introduced into N. tabacum. Quantitative and qualitative studies on
carotenoids and apocarotenoids in the transgenic plants expressing CsCCD2L alone
showed higher crocin level accumulation in N. glauca transgenic plants, reaching almost
400 μg/g DW in leaves, while in N. tabacum 36 μg/g DW was obtained. In contrast,
N. tabacum plants coexpressing CsCCD2L, BrCrtZ, and AtOrMut accumulated, 3.5-
fold compared to N. tabacum plants only expressing CsCCD2L. Crocins with three
and four sugar molecules were the main molecular species in both host systems.
Our results demonstrate that the production of saffron apocarotenoids is feasible in
engineered Nicotiana species and establishes a basis for the development of strategies
that may ultimately lead to the commercial exploitation of these valuable pigments for
multiple applications.
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Frontiers in plant science, 2022, vol. 13, núm. 861140, p. 1-11European research projects
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