Metabolome Profiling: A Breeding Prediction Tool for Legume Performance under Biotic Stress Conditions

Abstract

Legume crops such as common bean, pea, alfalfa, cowpea, peanut, soybean and others contribute significantly to the diet of both humans and animals. They are also important in the improvement of cropping systems that employ rotation and fix atmospheric nitrogen. Biotic stresses hinder the production of leguminous crops, significantly limiting their yield potential. There is a need to understand the molecular and biochemical mechanisms involved in the response of these crops to biotic stressors. Simultaneous expressions of a number of genes responsible for specific traits of interest in legumes under biotic stress conditions have been reported, often with the functions of the identified genes unknown. Metabolomics can, therefore, be a complementary tool to understand the pathways involved in biotic stress response in legumes. Reports on legume metabolomic studies in response to biotic stress have paved the way in understanding stress-signalling pathways. This review provides a progress update on metabolomic studies of legumes in response to different biotic stresses. Metabolome annotation and data analysis platforms are discussed together with future prospects. The integration of metabolomics with other “omics” tools in breeding programmes can aid greatly in ensuring food security through the production of stress tolerant cultivars.

Metabolome profile variations in common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) resistant and susceptible genotypes incited by rust (Uromyces appendiculatus)

“…Metabolites are products that play major roles in plant response to environmental stress conditions. Currently, there is limited knowledge on metabolites involved in resistance against an array of fungal and bacterial pathogens in legumes ( Makhumbila et al, 2022 ). In this study, an untargeted metabolome profiling of two common bean genotypes Teebus-RR-1 and Golden Gate Wax were investigated for their response to race 1 and 3 U. appendiculatus infections at different time-points (14 and 21 days).…”

“…Metabolomic techniques have played a vital role in aiding researchers to identify significant metabolites that contribute to legume improvement ( Ramalingam et al, 2015 ). Profiling of metabolites using LC-MS techniques has been widely utilised to evaluate legume performance under disease pressure ( Makhumbila et al, 2022 ). In a recent study, common bean infected with Fusarium solani significantly enriched biosynthesis of amino acids, flavonoid biosynthesis, purine metabolism and other pathways as a pathogen adaptation strategy ( Chen et al, 2020 ).…”

Nutritional, functional, and bioactive properties of african underutilized legumes

“…Infected common bean seedlings responded with modifications to their cell walls, the generation of reactive oxygen species, and a synergistic hormone-driven defense response. The study also found that infected plants induced energy metabolism, nitrogen mobilization, accumulation of sugars, and arginine and proline metabolism (Chen et al, 2020;Makhumbila et al, 2022). Reliable software tools such as GCMS, LC-MS, and NMR are required to analyze the vast amounts of data generated by metabolomic technologies.…”

“…It highlights the expressions and changes of metabolites, as well as their interactions and resulting phenotypic traits in plants subjected to harsh environmental conditions. Under such stress, plants must adapt their metabolomic pathways to maintain metabolic homeostasis, a process referred to as acclimation (Joshi et al, 2021;Makhumbila et al, 2022). Chen et al (2020) studied the metabolomic profile of common bean and identified major findings related to amino acids, flavonoids, isoflavonoids, purines, and proline metabolism.…”

Epidemiology and Control of Plant Diseases

“…The review of Makhumbila et al [ 6 ] provides a progress update on metabolomic studies of legumes in response to different biotic stresses. In their contribution, metabolome annotation and data analysis platforms are discussed together with future perspectives.…”