Biosynthetic gene clusters(BGCs)are regions of a genome where genes involved in a biosynthetic pathway are in proximity.The origin and evolution of plant BGCs as well as their role in specialized metabolism remain lar...Biosynthetic gene clusters(BGCs)are regions of a genome where genes involved in a biosynthetic pathway are in proximity.The origin and evolution of plant BGCs as well as their role in specialized metabolism remain largely unclear.In this study,we have assembled a chromosome-scale genome of Japanese catnip(Schizonepeta tenuifolia)and discovered a BGC that contains multiple copies of genes involved in four adjacent steps in the biosynthesis of p-menthane monoterpenoids.This BGC has an unprecedented bipartite structure,with mirrored biosynthetic regions separated by 260 kilobases.This bipartite BGC includes identical copies of a gene encoding an old yellow enzyme,a type of flavin-dependent reductase.In vitro assays and virus-induced gene silencing revealed that this gene encodes the missing isopiperitenone reductase.This enzyme evolved from a completely different enzyme family to isopiperitenone reductase from closely related Mentha spp.,indicating convergent evolution of this pathway step.Phylogenomic analysis revealed that this bipartite BGC has emerged uniquely in the S.tenuifolia lineage and through insertion of pathway genes into a region rich in monoterpene synthases.The cluster gained its bipartite structure via an inverted duplication.The discovered bipartite BGC for p-menthane biosynthesis in S.tenuifolia has similarities to the recently described duplicated p-menthane biosynthesis gene pairs in the Mentha longifolia genome,providing an example of the convergent evolution of gene order.This work expands our understanding of plant BGCs with respect to both form and evolution,and highlights the power of BGCs for gene discovery in plant biosynthetic pathways.展开更多
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(grant nos.81973435 and 81473313)the National Natural Science Foundation for Young Scientists of China(grant no.81903756)+2 种基金the Open Project of the Natural Science Foundation of Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine(no.NZY81903756)research on ecological planting and quality assurance of Jiangsu Dao-di herbs(2021)and a Jiangsu Government Scholarship for Overseas Studies(JS-2020-044).We also acknowledge support from the BBSRC(BBN006452/1)and UKRI(MR/S01862X/1).
文摘Biosynthetic gene clusters(BGCs)are regions of a genome where genes involved in a biosynthetic pathway are in proximity.The origin and evolution of plant BGCs as well as their role in specialized metabolism remain largely unclear.In this study,we have assembled a chromosome-scale genome of Japanese catnip(Schizonepeta tenuifolia)and discovered a BGC that contains multiple copies of genes involved in four adjacent steps in the biosynthesis of p-menthane monoterpenoids.This BGC has an unprecedented bipartite structure,with mirrored biosynthetic regions separated by 260 kilobases.This bipartite BGC includes identical copies of a gene encoding an old yellow enzyme,a type of flavin-dependent reductase.In vitro assays and virus-induced gene silencing revealed that this gene encodes the missing isopiperitenone reductase.This enzyme evolved from a completely different enzyme family to isopiperitenone reductase from closely related Mentha spp.,indicating convergent evolution of this pathway step.Phylogenomic analysis revealed that this bipartite BGC has emerged uniquely in the S.tenuifolia lineage and through insertion of pathway genes into a region rich in monoterpene synthases.The cluster gained its bipartite structure via an inverted duplication.The discovered bipartite BGC for p-menthane biosynthesis in S.tenuifolia has similarities to the recently described duplicated p-menthane biosynthesis gene pairs in the Mentha longifolia genome,providing an example of the convergent evolution of gene order.This work expands our understanding of plant BGCs with respect to both form and evolution,and highlights the power of BGCs for gene discovery in plant biosynthetic pathways.
