Methyl jasmonate-induced enhancement of expression activity of Am-FaPS-1, a putative farnesyl diphosphate synthase gene from Aquilaria microcarpa

Abstract

A cDNA clone, designated Am-FaPS-1 (1310 bp), was isolated from callus culture derived from the leaf tissues of Aquilaria microcarpa. This gene contains an open reading frame encoding the protein of 342 amino acid residues with high homology to farnesyl diphosphate synthase from various plant sources. An appreciable increase in the transcriptional level of Am-FaPS-1 was reproducibly observed by the exposure of the cell culture to methyl jasmonate. The expression activity of the gene was also elevated when the cells were treated with yeast extract and Ca(2+)-ionophore A23187. These results suggest that Am-FaPS-1 and its translate play roles in methyl jasmonate- and yeast extract-induced responses of A. microcarpa, and Ca(2+) functions as an important messenger molecule in these processes. This set of the results would support our hypothesis that the activation of Ca(2+)-cascade evoked by the elevation of cytoplasmic Ca(2+) concentration is an essential early event in methyl jasmonate-induced responses of higher plant cells.

Isolation and identification of bacterial endophytes from pharmaceutical agarwood-producing Aquilaria species

“…[2] This agarwood is also known as Oud, Oodh, and Agar etc. Agarwood-producing Aquilaria species includes Aquilaria beccariana van Tiegh., A. crassna Pierre,[23] A. hirta Ridl., A. malaccensis Lamk.,[4] A. microcarpa Baill.,[56] A. sinensis (Lour) Gilg,[7] and A. subintegra Ding Hou. Currently, there is a huge demand for agarwood, and Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam are the major producers of agarwood.…”

Characterization of wound responsive genes in Aquilaria malaccensis

“…Recently, genes encoding for δ-guaiene synthases have been cloned from MJ-treated cell cultures (Kumeta and Ito 2010) revealing for the first time genes that are directly involved in the synthesis of specific agarwood compounds. In addition, a gene encoding for farnesyl diphosphate synthase, an enzyme in oleoresin synthesis has also been cloned from MJ-induced callus culture of A. microcarpa (Kenmotsu et al 2011). Other genes that have been cloned from Aquilaria include the calmodulin (CAM) genes from callus culture of A. microcarpa, believe to have a role in signal transduction (Kenmotsu et al 2010).…”

Understanding Agarwood Formation and Its Challenges

“…In the following step, IPP or DMAPP is connected through the head-to-tail connections to form farnesyl diphosphate (FPP) (C15 unit), the precursor of sesquiterpenes, in the presence of FPP synthase (FaPS) (Cao et al 2012 ). Kenmotsu et al ( 2011 ) fi rst cloned the Am -FaPS -1 gene from A. microcarpa , which exhibited high homology with FaPS from different plant sources. The transcript was abundant upon exposure of the cell culture to MJ, yeast extract, and Ca 2+ ionophore A23187, indicating that the two former substances are triggers to induced responses in plants, while Ca 2+ acts as a molecule messenger in activating the process.…”