A soluble β-cyanoalanine synthase from the gut of the variegated grasshopper Zonocerus variegatus (L.)

Ogunlabi, Olugbenga; Agboola, Femi Kayode

doi:10.1016/j.ibmb.2006.10.003

Cited by 18 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 39 publications

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“…Cyanide-tolerant bacteria, for example, possess a diversity of pathways for degrading cyanogenic compounds, not all of them relying on sulphur (Dubey and Holmes 1995). Like many plants (Miller and Conn 1980), some insect specialists on cyanogenic plants detoxify HCN using b-cyanoalanine synthase and cysteine synthase in a set of reactions involving no net consumption of sulphurcontaining amino acids (Ogunlabi and Agboola 2007;Zagrobelny et al 2004). The increasing importance of adapted specialist herbivores can lead to phylogenetic patterns of decline in effectiveness of resistance traits (Agrawal and Fishbein 2008).…”

Section: Biocultural Coevolution Between People and Maniocmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, some arthropod specialists on cyanogenic plants continue to be deterred, suffering strong fitness reduction when they ingest high levels of cyanogens (Ballhorn et al 2007). Similarly, despite its possession of the efficient and sulphur-sparing b-cyanoalanine synthase detoxification pathway (Ogunlabi and Agboola 2007), the polyphagous African grasshopper Zonocerus variegatus is deterred by high levels of cyanogens in manioc (Bernays et al 1977).…”

Section: Biocultural Coevolution Between People and Maniocmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Chemical ecology in coupled human and natural systems: people, manioc, multitrophic interactions and global change

et al. 2010

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Chemical ecology provides unique perspectives for managing plant/human interactions to achieve food security. Allelochemicals function as chemical defences of crop plants, enhancing yields. While ingested allelochemicals can confer health benefits to humans, at higher concentrations they are often toxic. The delicate balance between their positive and negative effects in crop plants is influenced by many factors. Some of these-how environment affects optimal levels of defence, how metabolic interactions with nutrients affect toxicity of ingested allelochemicals-are the province of chemical ecology. These biological factors, however, interact with social factors, and neither can be studied independently. Chemical ecologists must work together with social scientists to understand the overall system. Here, we illustrate such an integrative approach, analysing the interactions between people and the major tropical crop manioc, which contains cyanogenic glucosides. Polymorphism for cyanogen levels in manioc facilitates analysis of how costs and benefits of crop defences vary among social systems. We first show how people/ manioc interactions diversified in this crop's Amazonian homeland, then turn to the remarkable cultural adaptations of African farmers since manioc's introduction 400 years ago. Finally, we evaluate new coevolutionary challenges in parts of Africa where people are still unfamiliar with a potentially dangerous crop. Current environmental and social catastrophes have restricted farmers' options, resulting in acute problems in health of humans and ecosystems. We show that high cyanogen levels confer important agronomic advantages, but also impose costs and constraints that can only be understood when biology is coupled with analysis of social, cultural and economic factors. Detoxifying manioc technologically requires know-how, time, water and other resources. Detoxifying residual dietary cyanogens metabolically depends on being able to grow, or to buy, the nutrients required for detoxification, primarily sulphur-rich proteins. Solutions that appear adaptive today may not be in the future, as changing climate, rising atmospheric CO 2 levels and decreased access to fertilizers affect productivity of crops and the nutrient and allelochemical composition of the foods they are used to produce.

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Section: Biocultural Coevolution Between People and Maniocmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Biocultural Coevolution Between People and Maniocmentioning

confidence: 99%

Chemical ecology in coupled human and natural systems: people, manioc, multitrophic interactions and global change

et al. 2010

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“…The β-CAS pathway (Fig. 2) is the principal route for cyanide detoxification in plants (Meyers & Ahmad 1991;Ogunlabi & Agboola 2007). The discovery of the pathway dates to early investigations of cyanogenic glycoside metabolism using labelled H 14 CN to determine the origin of the nitrile group associated with plant cyanogenic glycosides (Blumenthal-Goldschmidt et al 1963).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The β‐cyanoalanine synthase pathway: beyond cyanide detoxification

Machingura

Salomon

Jez

et al. 2016

Plant Cell & Environment

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Production of cyanide through biological and environmental processes requires the detoxification of this metabolic poison. In the 1960s, discovery of the β-cyanoalanine synthase (β-CAS) pathway in cyanogenic plants provided the first insight on cyanide detoxification in nature. Fifty years of investigations firmly established the protective role of the β-CAS pathway in cyanogenic plants and its role in the removal of cyanide produced from ethylene synthesis in plants, but also revealed the importance of this pathway for plant growth and development and the integration of nitrogen and sulfur metabolism. This review describes the β-CAS pathway, its distribution across and within higher plants, and the diverse biological functions of the pathway in cyanide assimilation, plant growth and development, stress tolerance, regulation of cyanide and sulfide signalling, and nitrogen and sulfur metabolism. The collective roles of the β-CAS pathway highlight its potential evolutionary and ecological importance in plants.

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“…Rhodanese (EC 2.8. The enzyme β-cyanoalanine synthase has been shown to be present in several plant species (Blumenthal et al 1968;Floss et al 1965;Miller and Conn 1980), insects (Ogunlabi and Agboola 2007), and in some bacteria (Dunhill and Fowden 1965;Castric and Strobel 1969;Castric 1975). The utilization of cyanoalanine synthase by plants for the metabolism of cyanide could also be advantageous since many plants (Castric et al 1972) can further metabolize the product, cyanoalanine to asparagine which can then be incorporated into the general metabolism of the plant.…”

Section: Cyanide Assimilation and Metabolismmentioning

confidence: 99%

Phytoremediation of Cyanide

Srivastava

Muni

2010

Plant Adaptation and Phytoremediation

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Free cyanide and complex cyanide, including HCN and CN − is the most reactive and toxic substance of all industrial and anthropogenic pollutants. Many studies till date have proved that cyanide can be efficiently removed by plants. From the economic point of view, phytoremediation could be an attractive and useful technology in dealing with this dangerous pollutant. Phytoremediation of complex and free cyanide include removal of cyanide by terrestrial and aquatic plants. Experiments using free and complex cyanide have shown that many terrestrial and aquatic plants including willow, sorghum, cassava and water hyacinth can remove free cyanide from the hydroponic media. Cyanide uptake in plants can be associated with very complex physiological mechanisms which include transport and assimilation of cyanide within the plants for catering plant's nitrogen needs. Transport and metabolism of different chemical species of cyanide differ in various plant species including trees, grasses and aquatic plants. Again uptake of cyanide by roots is depending on its form and condition. A detailed insight of uptake, transport and assimilation of cyanide compounds in plants is discussed here. In this chapter, chemical nature of cyanide, possible industrial pollutant sources, various phytoremediation approaches, mechanism of cyanide assimilation in plants, and genomics of cyanide remedy are evaluated.

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A soluble β-cyanoalanine synthase from the gut of the variegated grasshopper Zonocerus variegatus (L.)

Cited by 18 publications

References 39 publications

Chemical ecology in coupled human and natural systems: people, manioc, multitrophic interactions and global change

Chemical ecology in coupled human and natural systems: people, manioc, multitrophic interactions and global change

The β‐cyanoalanine synthase pathway: beyond cyanide detoxification

Phytoremediation of Cyanide

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