The genome of jojoba (Simmondsia chinensis): A taxonomically isolated species that directs wax ester accumulation in its seeds

Authors: STURTEVANT, DREW - University Of North Texas; LU, SHAOPING - Huazhong Agricultural University; ZHOU, ZHI-WEI - Huazhong Agricultural University; SHEN, YIN - Huazhong Agricultural University; WANG, SHUO - Huazhong Agricultural University; SONG, JIA-MING - Huazhong Agricultural University; ZHONG, JINSHUN - Heinrich-Heine University; BURKS, DAVID - University Of North Texas; YANG, AHI-QUAN - Huazhong Agricultural University; YANG, QING-YONG - Huazhong Agricultural University; CANNON, ASHLEY - University Of North Texas; HERRFURTH, CORNELIA - University Of Gottingen; FEUSSNER, IVO - University Of Gottingen; BORISJUK, LJUDMILLA - Leibniz Institute Of Plant Genetics And Crop Plant Research; MUNZ, EBERHARD - Leibniz Institute Of Plant Genetics And Crop Plant Research; VERBECK, GUIDO - University Of North Texas; WANG, XUEXIA - University Of North Texas; AZAD, RAJEEV - University Of North Texas; Singleton, Brenda; Dyer, John; CHEN, LING-LING - Huazhong Agricultural University; CHAPMAN, KENT - University Of North Texas; GUO, LIANG - Huazhong Agricultural University

Submitted to: Science Advances
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 12/16/2019
Publication Date: 3/11/2020
Citation: Sturtevant, D., Lu, S., Zhou, Z., Shen, Y., Wang, S., Song, J., Zhong, J., Burks, D.J., Yang, A., Yang, Q., Cannon, A.E., Herrfurth, C., Feussner, I., Borisjuk, L., Munz, E., Verbeck, G.F., Wang, X., Azad, R.K., Singleton, B.B., Dyer, J.M., Chen, L., Chapman, K.D., Guo, L. 2020. The genome of jojoba (Simmondsia chinensis): A taxonomically isolated species that directs wax ester accumulation in its seeds. Science Advances. 6(11). https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.aay3240.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.aay3240

Interpretive Summary: Jojoba is a desert shrub cultivated for its unique seed oil, which is enriched in wax esters that can be used in high-value applications such as cosmetics and industrial lubricants. This manuscript describes the genome sequence of this important industrial crop and provides a detailed analysis of the genes and enzymes involved in wax production in developing seeds. The genome contains 26 chromosomes, with 23,491 protein-encoding genes. Novel mass spectrometry-based methods were used to “visualize” where waxes were stored in specific regions of jojoba seed, providing new insight to the spatial organization of wax production. Collectively, these results provide rich genomic and metabolomic information that will underpin future efforts to further improve crop performance and yield, and also provide new opportunities for producing high-value waxes in transgenically modified crops.

Technical Abstract: Seeds of the desert shrub, jojoba (Simmondsia chinensis), are an abundant, renewable source of liquid wax esters, which are valued additives in cosmetic products and industrial lubricants. Jojoba is relegated to its own taxonomic family, and there is little genetic information available to elucidate its phylogeny. Here, we report the high-quality, 887-Mb genome of jojoba assembled into 26 chromosomes with 23,490 protein-coding genes. The jojoba genome has only the whole-genome triplication shared among eudicots and no recent duplications. These genomic resources coupled with extensive transcriptome, proteome, and lipidome data helped to define heterogeneous pathways and machinery for lipid synthesis and storage, provided missing evolutionary history information for this taxonomically segregated dioecious plant species, and will support efforts to improve the agronomic properties of jojoba.