Characterization of Molecular Properties and Expression of Gene GmPLMT and Its Effects on the Production of Lipid Metabolites in Soybean and Arabidopsis thaliana

Abstract

Phospholipid N-methyltransferase (PLMT) plays an important role in the synthesis of phosphatidylcholine (PtdCho). The aim of this study was to characterize the molecular properties of GmPLMT and the expression of soybean GmPLMT and its effects on the production of lipid metabolites. Results showed that GmPLMT composed of mainly α-helix was a hydrophobic and transmembrane protein. In soybean leaves, GmPLMT was highly expressed during seedling and flowering stages. In transgenic Arabidopsis thaliana, the highest and lowest expression levels of GmPLMT were detected at flowering and maturity stages, respectively. The total phospholipid contents in soybean grains were decreased from 7.2% (35 days after flowering) to 4.8% (55 days after flowering) and then increased to 7.0% (75 days after flowering). The contents of PtdCho showed a similar pattern to that of total phospholipids. In transgenic A. thaliana seeds, the contents of total phospholipids and PtdCho were significantly increased. Significantly positive correlations were revealed between expression of GmPLMT and contents of both PtdCho and crude fats, and between the contents of PtdCho and both linoleic acid and linolenic acid, suggesting that increased expression of GmPLMT improved the production of lipid metabolites. This study provided solid experimental evidence for further improvement of soybean quality based on GmPLMT in the molecular breeding of soybeans.

Advances in Molecular Exploration of Crop Plants under Environmental Stresses from Genetic and Genomic Perspectives

“…First, there are a total of four articles focused on soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr. ], with two contributed by the Cui laboratory at the Jilin Agricultural University [13,14] and the other two by the Li Laboratory at the Nanjing Agricultural University [15,16]. Most of the results derived from these studies were verified using Arabidopsis thaliana.…”

“…The authors further verified these results using Arabidopsis plants, providing strong experimental evidence to support the further functional analysis of soybean TGA transcription factors under drought stress and the molecular breeding of drought-resistant crop plants. Chen et al [14] characterized the molecular properties of phospholipid N-methyltransferase (PLMT) in soybean (GmPLMT) and the effects of the expression of GmPLMT on the production of lipid metabolites in soybean. The results showed that GmPLMT was abundantly expressed in soybean leaves during both seedling and flowering stages, whereas in transgenic Arabidopsis thaliana, the highest and lowest expression levels of GmPLMT were revealed during flowering and maturity stages, respectively.…”