Metabonomic Profiling Analyses Reveal ANS Upregulation to Enhance the Flavonoid Pathway of Purple-Fleshed Sweet Potato Storage Root in Response to Deep Shading

Abstract

Intercropping, as a common worldwide cultivation pattern, provides opportunities for sustainable agriculture with fuller use of light, temperature and land resources and greater yield per unit of land. The intercropping impact on crop quality is a current focus. This study found that shading cultivation of purple-fleshed sweet potato can improve the storage root pigment accumulation by more than 20% to increase economic benefits. We performed gas chromatography and mass spectrometry analysis of storage roots of the anthocyanin-enriched cultivar Jihei-1 under 60% shading and nonshaded treatments. A total of 224 differential metabolites were identified, among which N-acetyl-5-hydroxytryptamine, 1-monopalmitin, 4-pyridoxic acid, dodecano, arbutin, tryptophan, citrulline and phenylalanine were significantly upregulated under shading with a more than 10-fold change. Furthermore, metabolic pathway enrichment maps were based on the biological processes and stratification level selected. These metabolites mainly influenced the pathways of phenylpropanoid biosynthesis, the citrate cycle, organic acid biosynthesis and metabolism and amino acid metabolism. Through tissue-specific dynamic changes in amino acids, soluble sugars, starch and anthocyanins during storage root development, we proposed a variety-specific strategy of purple-fleshed sweet potato in response to prolonged deep shading, that is, utilizing and enhancing broad aboveground-tissue photosynthesis and transferring photosynthates into roots in advance, leading to a rapid increase in storage root anthocyanin synthesis. With comprehensive qPCR, western blot and enzyme activity analyses, we identified three key enzymes, CHS, ANS and 3GT, in purple-fleshed sweet potato storage roots in response to shading, which affect the root anthocyanin content by influencing the flavonoid metabolism pathway. This study provides a theoretical basis for revealing the regulation of anthocyanin synthesis in crops and a guidance for high-quality sweet potato cultivation and nutritional improvement using shade facilities.

Genes and pathways associated with drought tolerance in Populus wutunensis under drought stress

“…Flavonoids have important antioxidant functions and can improve stress resistance in plants [54,55,56]. Chalcone synthase is a key enzyme in the avonoid synthesis pathway [57]. Tamarix taklamakanensis mainly responds to drought and rewatering by regulating the Flavonoids pathways [58].…”

OsSPLs Regulate Male Fertility in Response to Different Temperatures by Flavonoid Biosynthesis and Tapetum PCD in PTGMS Rice

“…Active flavonoid biosynthesis processes are present in fertile plants, which were directly responsible for the high content of flavanones and flavones. Some studies found that MYB ( MYB11 , MYB12 and MYB111 ) regulates the expression of several early flavonoid biosynthetic genes, including CHS , CHI , F3H and FLS1 , while SPL may have an indirect effect on MYB12 and MYB111 via a feedback loop [ 69 , 70 , 71 ]. Therefore, it was hypothesized that OsSPL17 might affect rice male fertility by regulating the accumulation process of flavonoid substances ( Figure 11 ).…”

Combined analysis of transcriptome and metabolome reveals that sugar, lipid, and phenylpropane metabolism are essential for male fertility in temperature-induced male sterile rice

“…The phenylpropanoid pathway provides intermediates for synthesizing lignins and flavonoids, which are major metabolic processes in plant growth and development. Previous studies have demonstrated that the phenylpropane metabolic pathway is regulated by temperature changes, especially the flavonoid metabolic process ( Solecka et al, 1999 ; Guo et al, 2020 ; Hao et al, 2021b ; He et al, 2021c ). Flavonoids have also been demonstrated to have a functional role in plant male fertility ( Wang et al, 2020 ; He et al, 2021b ), and it was found that impaired pollen function and reduced seed setting appeared in a plant bearing the chs mutant and the RNAi-mediated suppression of FLS gene ( Burbulis et al, 1996 ; Mahajan et al, 2011 ).…”