Dataset Information

Effects of PHENYLALANINE AMMONIA LYASE (PAL) knockdown on cell wall composition, biomass digestibility, and biotic and abiotic stress responses in Brachypodium.

ABSTRACT: The phenylpropanoid pathway in plants synthesizes a variety of structural and defence compounds, and is an important target in efforts to reduce cell wall lignin for improved biomass conversion to biofuels. Little is known concerning the trade-offs in grasses when perturbing the function of the first gene family in the pathway, PHENYLALANINE AMMONIA LYASE (PAL). Therefore, PAL isoforms in the model grass Brachypodium distachyon were targeted, by RNA interference (RNAi), and large reductions (up to 85%) in stem tissue transcript abundance for two of the eight putative BdPAL genes were identified. The cell walls of stems of BdPAL-knockdown plants had reductions of 43% in lignin and 57% in cell wall-bound ferulate, and a nearly 2-fold increase in the amounts of polysaccharide-derived carbohydrates released by thermochemical and hydrolytic enzymic partial digestion. PAL-knockdown plants exhibited delayed development and reduced root growth, along with increased susceptibilities to the fungal pathogens Fusarium culmorum and Magnaporthe oryzae. Surprisingly, these plants generally had wild-type (WT) resistances to caterpillar herbivory, drought, and ultraviolet light. RNA sequencing analyses revealed that the expression of genes associated with stress responses including ethylene biosynthesis and signalling were significantly altered in PAL knocked-down plants under non-challenging conditions. These data reveal that, although an attenuation of the phenylpropanoid pathway increases carbohydrate availability for biofuel, it can adversely affect plant growth and disease resistance to fungal pathogens. The data identify notable differences between the stress responses of these monocot pal mutants versus Arabidopsis (a dicot) pal mutants and provide insights into the challenges that may arise when deploying phenylpropanoid pathway-altered bioenergy crops.

SUBMITTER: Cass CL

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4493789 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Effects of PHENYLALANINE AMMONIA LYASE (PAL) knockdown on cell wall composition, biomass digestibility, and biotic and abiotic stress responses in Brachypodium.

Cass Cynthia L CL Peraldi Antoine A Dowd Patrick F PF Mottiar Yaseen Y Santoro Nicholas N Karlen Steven D SD Bukhman Yury V YV Foster Cliff E CE Thrower Nick N Bruno Laura C LC Moskvin Oleg V OV Johnson Eric T ET Willhoit Megan E ME Phutane Megha M Ralph John J Mansfield Shawn D SD Nicholson Paul P Sedbrook John C JC

Journal of experimental botany 20150619 14

The phenylpropanoid pathway in plants synthesizes a variety of structural and defence compounds, and is an important target in efforts to reduce cell wall lignin for improved biomass conversion to biofuels. Little is known concerning the trade-offs in grasses when perturbing the function of the first gene family in the pathway, PHENYLALANINE AMMONIA LYASE (PAL). Therefore, PAL isoforms in the model grass Brachypodium distachyon were targeted, by RNA interference (RNAi), and large reductions (up ...[more]

PMID: 26093023

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Project description:BACKGROUND: Phenylalanine ammonia lyase (PAL) is a key enzyme of the phenylpropanoid pathway that catalyzes the deamination of phenylalanine to trans-cinnamic acid, a precursor for the lignin and flavonoid biosynthetic pathways. To date, PAL genes have been less extensively studied in gymnosperms than in angiosperms. Our interest in PAL genes stems from their potential role in the defense responses of Pinus taeda, especially with respect to lignification and production of low molecular weight phenolic compounds under various biotic and abiotic stimuli. In contrast to all angiosperms for which reference genome sequences are available, P. taeda has previously been characterized as having only a single PAL gene. Our objective was to re-evaluate this finding, assess the evolutionary history of PAL genes across major angiosperm and gymnosperm lineages, and characterize PAL gene expression patterns in Pinus taeda. METHODS: We compiled a large set of PAL genes from the largest transcript dataset available for P. taeda and other conifers. The transcript assemblies for P. taeda were validated through sequencing of PCR products amplified using gene-specific primers based on the putative PAL gene assemblies. Verified PAL gene sequences were aligned and a gene tree was estimated. The resulting gene tree was reconciled with a known species tree and the time points for gene duplication events were inferred relative to the divergence of major plant lineages. RESULTS: In contrast to angiosperms, gymnosperms have retained a diverse set of PAL genes distributed among three major clades that arose from gene duplication events predating the divergence of these two seed plant lineages. Whereas multiple PAL genes have been identified in sequenced angiosperm genomes, all characterized angiosperm PAL genes form a single clade in the gene PAL tree, suggesting they are derived from a single gene in an ancestral angiosperm genome. The five distinct PAL genes detected and verified in P. taeda were derived from a combination of duplication events predating and postdating the divergence of angiosperms and gymnosperms. CONCLUSIONS: Gymnosperms have a more phylogenetically diverse set of PAL genes than angiosperms. This inference has contrasting implications for the evolution of PAL gene function in gymnosperms and angiosperms.

Dataset Information

Effects of PHENYLALANINE AMMONIA LYASE (PAL) knockdown on cell wall composition, biomass digestibility, and biotic and abiotic stress responses in Brachypodium.

Publications

Effects of PHENYLALANINE AMMONIA LYASE (PAL) knockdown on cell wall composition, biomass digestibility, and biotic and abiotic stress responses in Brachypodium.

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