Multi‐omics profiling reveals comprehensive microbe–plant–metabolite regulation patterns for medicinal plant Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch

Abstract

Summary Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch is a medicinal plant widely used to treat multiple diseases in Europe and Asia, and its efficacy largely depends on liquiritin and glycyrrhizic acid. The regulatory pattern responsible for the difference in efficacy between wild and cultivated G. uralensis remains largely undetermined. Here, we collected roots and rhizosphere soils from wild (WT) G. uralensis as well as those farmed for 1 year (C1) and 3 years (C3), generated metabolite and transcript data for roots, microbiota data for rhizospheres and conducted comprehensive multi‐omics analyses. We updated gene structures for all 40 091 genes in G. uralensis, and based on 52 differentially expressed genes, we charted the route‐map of both liquiritin and glycyrrhizic acid biosynthesis, with genes BAS, CYP72A154 and CYP88D6 critical for glycyrrhizic acid biosynthesis being significantly expressed higher in wild G. uralensis than in cultivated G. uralensis. Additionally, multi‐omics network analysis identified that Lysobacter was strongly associated with CYP72A154, which was required for glycyrrhizic acid biosynthesis. Finally, we developed a holistic multi‐omics regulation model that confirmed the importance of rhizosphere microbial community structure in liquiritin accumulation. This study thoroughly decoded the key regulatory mechanisms of liquiritin and glycyrrhizic acid, and provided new insights into the interactions of the plant's key metabolites with its transcriptome, rhizosphere microbes and environment, which would guide future cultivation of G. uralensis.

Explore the interaction between root metabolism and rhizosphere microbiota during the growth of Angelica sinensis

“…In the case pf medicinal plants, specific microorganisms may be directly related to the biosynthesis of medicinal components of the host plant. For example, Lysobacter was identified strongly associated with gene CYP72A154, which was required glycyrrhizic acid biosynthesis of Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fish ( Zhong et al., 2022 ). Therefore, to further elucidate the relation between differential microbial community, differential secondary metabolites and medicinal components, two interactive networks were constructed ( Figures 6 , 7 ).…”

Nanostructures in Chinese herbal medicines (CHMs) for potential therapy

“…40 Single components of CHMs also undergo self-assembly. Licorice, the root and rhizome of Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch., is an important CHM that is commonly used to cure multiple diseases in Europe and Asia 41 and GA is the major constituent of licorice. Owing to its hydrophobic and hydrophilic moieties, GA shows self-assembly behavior in water to form nanofibers, which can be used to create functional hybrid materials, implying that the solubilizing result of licorice may be attributed to GA self-assembly behavior.…”

Integration of high-throughput omics technologies in medicinal plant research: The new era of natural drug discovery

“…For example, comparing transcriptome profiles of one to four years old D. officinale stems revealed that key genes, such as CHS and FLS that are involved in flavonol synthesis, were highly expressed in the biennial samples, suggesting that the optimal harvesting period of D. officinale is 2-3 years ( Yuan et al., 2022 ). Moreover, multiple DEGs involved in liquiritin biosynthesis (e.g., UDP-glucosyltransferase (UGTs)), displayed distinct expression patterns in Glycyrrhiza uralensis farmed between 1 year and 3 years ( Zhong et al., 2022 ).…”