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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Beltsville, Maryland (BARC) » Beltsville Agricultural Research Center » Adaptive Cropping Systems Laboratory » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #358687
Title: Cloning and characterization of three sugar metabolism genes (LBGAE, LBGALA, and LBMS) regulated in response to elevated CO2 in goji berry (Lycium barbarum L.)

Author
item MA, YAPING - Ningxia University
item MURA, JYOSTNA - Collaborator
item Reddy, Vangimalla
item CAO, BING - Ningxia University
item SONG, LIHUA - Ningxia University
item GAO, HANDONG - Nanjing Forestry University

Submitted to: Plants
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 2/4/2021
Publication Date: 2/7/2021
Citation: Ma, Y., Mura, J., Reddy, V., Cao, B., Song, L., Gao, H. 2021. Cloning and characterization of three sugar metabolism genes (LBGAE, LBGALA, and LBMS) regulated in response to elevated CO2 in goji berry (Lycium barbarum L.). Plants. 10(2):321. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants10020321.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/plants10020321

Interpretive Summary: The composition and content of sugar play an essential role in determining the fruit quality in Goji berry (Lycium barbarum L.). In this study, reduction in the content of polysaccharides, sucrose and reduced sugar in the fruits of goji berry grown under elevated CO2 was observed. Further, three genes involved in the sugar metabolism under elevated CO2 content were isolated, cloned and characterized from the goji berry fruit. This study helps in understating the molecular regulation mechanisms of sugar metabolism in response to elevated CO2 concentration to improve the fruit quality.

Technical Abstract: The composition and content of sugar play a pivotal role in Goji berry (Lycium barbarum L.) fruits, determining the fruit quality. The CO2 content in the atmosphere influences sugars in goji berry fruits with a reduced content under elevated CO2. The objective of this study was to clone and sequence three genes of Lycium barbarum; LBGAE (UDP-glucuronate 4-epimerase), LBGALA (alpha-galactosidase), and LBMS (malate synthase) involved in sugar metabolism. These genes were differentially expressed in goji berry fruit under elevated CO2 (700 µmol·mol-1 CO2) compared to ambient CO2 (400 µmol·mol-1 CO2) grown in open-top chambers for 120 days. Cloning and sequencing of these three genes were performed by RACE (Rapid amplification of cDNA ends)-PCR. The LBGAE gene comprises 1837 bp with an ORF (Open reading frame) of 1236 bp encoding 411 amino acid. The LBGALA gene contains 1233 bp encoding 410 amino acid. Protein structures of three genes were mainly composed of Alpha helix, random coil, and extended strand. Phylogenetic analysis revealed a higher similarity of three genes with Solanum tuberosum, Solanum Lycopersicum, and Nicotiana tabacum. Furthermore, comprehensive expression analysis of these genes in the fruits exposed to elevated CO2 was performed using Q RT-PCR, revealing increased expression compared to ambient CO2 conditions. However, the content of reduced sugars, polysaccharides, sucrose and starch measured was decreased along with sugar metabolism genes. This study provides a foundation for performing further studies to determine the molecular regulation mechanism of sugar accumulation in goji berry under climate change conditions.