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Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) Jan 2021Cyanogenic glycosides are an important and widespread class of plant natural products, which are however structurally less diverse than many other classes of natural... (Review)
Review
Cyanogenic glycosides are an important and widespread class of plant natural products, which are however structurally less diverse than many other classes of natural products. So far, 112 naturally occurring cyanogenic glycosides have been described in the phytochemical literature. Currently, these unique compounds have been reported from more than 2500 plant species. Natural cyanogenic glycosides show variations regarding both the aglycone and the sugar part of the molecules. The predominant sugar moiety is glucose but many substitution patterns of this glucose moiety exist in nature. Regarding the aglycone moiety, four different basic classes can be distinguished, aliphatic, cyclic, aromatic, and heterocyclic aglycones. Our overview covers all cyanogenic glycosides isolated from plants and includes 33 compounds with a non-cyclic aglycone, 20 cyclopentane derivatives, 55 natural products with an aromatic aglycone, and four dihydropyridone derivatives. In the following sections, we will provide an overview about the chemical diversity known so far and mention the first source from which the respective compounds had been isolated. This review will serve as a first reference for researchers trying to find new cyanogenic glycosides and highlights some gaps in the knowledge about the exact structures of already described compounds.
Topics: Biological Products; Glycosides; Hydrogen Cyanide; Plants
PubMed: 33573160
DOI: 10.3390/molecules26030719 -
Genetica 1994The rol genes are part of the T-DNA which is transferred by Agrobacterium rhizogenes in plant cells, causing neoplastic growth and differentiation. Each of these... (Review)
Review
The rol genes are part of the T-DNA which is transferred by Agrobacterium rhizogenes in plant cells, causing neoplastic growth and differentiation. Each of these bacterial oncogenes deeply influences plant development and is finely regulated once transferred into the plant host. Both from the study of the effects and biochemical function of the rol genes and from the analysis of their regulation, important insight in plant development can be derived. Some of the most intriguing aspects of past, current and future research on this gene system are highlighted and discussed.
Topics: Bacterial Proteins; DNA, Bacterial; Genes, Bacterial; Oncogenes; Plant Development; Plant Tumors; Plants; Rhizobium
PubMed: 7896140
DOI: 10.1007/BF01443434 -
Journal of Experimental Botany May 2017The primary processes that contribute to the efficient capture of soil nitrate are the development of a root system that effectively explores the soil and the expression... (Review)
Review
The primary processes that contribute to the efficient capture of soil nitrate are the development of a root system that effectively explores the soil and the expression of high-affinity nitrate uptake systems in those roots. Both these processes are highly regulated to take into account the availability and distribution of external nitrate pools and the endogenous N status of the plant. While significant progress has been made in elucidating the early steps in sensing and responding to external nitrate, there is much less clarity about how the plant monitors its N status. This review specifically addresses the questions of what N compounds are sensed and in which part of the plant, as well as the identity of the signalling pathways responsible for their detection. Candidates that are considered for the role of N sensory systems include the target of rapamycin (TOR) signalling pathway, the general control non-derepressible 2 (GCN2) pathway, the plastidic PII-dependent pathway, and the family of glutamate-like receptors (GLRs). However, despite significant recent progress in elucidating the function and mode of action of these signalling systems, there is still much uncertainty about the extent to which they contribute to the process by which plants monitor their N status. The possibility is discussed that the large GLR family of Ca2+ channels, which are gated by a wide range of different amino acids and expressed throughout the plant, could act as amino acid sensors upstream of a Ca2+-regulated signalling pathway, such as the TOR pathway, to regulate the plant's response to changes in N status.
Topics: Nitrogen Compounds; Plant Physiological Phenomena; Plants; Signal Transduction
PubMed: 28201547
DOI: 10.1093/jxb/erx013 -
Advances in Virus Research 2010
Topics: Genetic Engineering; Immunity, Innate; Plant Diseases; Plant Viruses; Plants; Plants, Genetically Modified
PubMed: 20362221
DOI: 10.1016/S0065-3527(10)76011-5 -
Biochimica Et Biophysica Acta Aug 2016Although major advances have been made during the past 20 years in our understanding of the genetic and genomic consequences of polyploidy, our knowledge of polyploidy... (Review)
Review
Although major advances have been made during the past 20 years in our understanding of the genetic and genomic consequences of polyploidy, our knowledge of polyploidy and the proteome is in its infancy. One of our goals is to stimulate additional study, particularly broad-scale proteomic analyses of polyploids and their progenitors. Although it may be too early to generalize regarding the extent to which transcriptomic data are predictive of the proteome of polyploids, it is clear that the proteome does not always reflect the transcriptome. Despite limited data, important observations on the proteomes of polyploids are emerging. In some cases, proteomic profiles show qualitatively and/or quantitatively non-additive patterns, and proteomic novelty has been observed. Allopolyploids generally combine the parental contributions, but there is evidence of parental dominance of one contributing genome in some allopolyploids. Autopolyploids are typically qualitatively identical to but quantitatively different from their parents. There is also evidence of parental legacy at the proteomic level. Proteomes clearly provide insights into the consequences of genomic merger and doubling beyond what is obtained from genomic and/or transcriptomic data. Translating proteomic changes in polyploids to differences in morphology and physiology remains the holy grail of polyploidy--this daunting task of linking genotype to proteome to phenotype should emerge as a focus of polyploidy research in the next decade. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Plant Proteomics--a bridge between fundamental processes and crop production, edited by Dr. Hans-Peter Mock.
Topics: Gene Expression Profiling; Plant Proteins; Plants; Polyploidy; Proteome; Proteomics
PubMed: 26993527
DOI: 10.1016/j.bbapap.2016.03.010 -
Gene Dec 1997A spectrum of different hypotheses has been presented by various authors, from plant transposable elements as major agents in evolution to the very opposite, transposons... (Review)
Review
A spectrum of different hypotheses has been presented by various authors, from plant transposable elements as major agents in evolution to the very opposite, transposons as mainly selfish DNA constituting a genetic burden for the organisms. The following review will focus on: (1) a short survey of the two main different assessments of transposable elements (TEs) concerning the origin of species (selfish vs useful DNA); (2) the significance of the hierarchy of gene functions and redundancies for TE activities (selfish in non-redundant parts of the genome, but as a source of variability in the rest); (3) the relevance of the results of TE research in Zea mays and Antirrhinum majus for species formation in the wild (contrast between artificial and natural selection); (4) three areas of research where a synthesis between the two different evaluations of TEs seems possible: regressive evolution, the origin of ecotypes and the origin of cultivated plants; and (5) some possible prospects regarding TE-induced species formation in the angiosperms in general, i.e., the basic difference between systematic and genetic species concepts and the conceivable origin of a large part of angiosperm morphospecies owing to loss of function and further mutations by TE activities.
Topics: DNA; DNA Transposable Elements; Evolution, Molecular; Plants
PubMed: 9461398
DOI: 10.1016/s0378-1119(97)00397-1 -
Trends in Plant Science Dec 2019Crop diseases, in conjunction with climate change, are a major threat to global crop production. DNA methylation is an epigenetic mark and is involved in plants'... (Review)
Review
Crop diseases, in conjunction with climate change, are a major threat to global crop production. DNA methylation is an epigenetic mark and is involved in plants' biological processes, including development, stress adaptation, and genome evolution. By providing a new source of variation, DNA methylation introduces novel direction to both scientists and breeders with its potential in disease resistance enhancement. Here, we discuss the impact of pathogen-induced DNA methylation modifications on a host's transcriptome reprogramming and genome stability, as part of the plant's defense mechanisms. We also highlight the knowledge gaps that need to be investigated for understanding the entire role of DNA methylation in plant pathogen interactions. This will ultimately assist breeders toward improving resistance and decreasing yield losses.
Topics: DNA Methylation; Disease Resistance; Epigenesis, Genetic; Epigenomics; Humans; Plants
PubMed: 31604599
DOI: 10.1016/j.tplants.2019.08.007 -
Biology of the Cell Oct 2005Accumulating evidence indicates that aquaporins play a key role in plant water relations. Plant aquaporins are part of a large and highly divergent protein family that... (Review)
Review
Accumulating evidence indicates that aquaporins play a key role in plant water relations. Plant aquaporins are part of a large and highly divergent protein family that can be divided into four subfamilies according to amino acid sequence similarity. As in other organisms, plant aquaporins facilitate the transcellular movement of water, but, in some cases, also the flux of small neutral solutes across a cellular membrane. Plant cell membranes are characterized by a large range of osmotic water permeabilities, and recent data indicate that plant aquaporin activity might be regulated by gating mechanisms. The factors affecting the gating behaviour possibly involve phosphorylation, heteromerization, pH, Ca2+, pressure, solute gradients and temperature. Regulation of aquaporin trafficking may also represent a way to modulate membrane water permeability. The aim of this review is to integrate recent molecular and biophysical data on the mechanisms regulating aquaporin activity in plant membranes and to relate them to putative changes in protein structure.
Topics: Aquaporins; Biological Transport; Cell Membrane Permeability; Gene Expression Regulation, Enzymologic; Gene Expression Regulation, Plant; Plants; Protein Structure, Tertiary; Sequence Homology, Amino Acid; Water
PubMed: 16171457
DOI: 10.1042/BC20040133 -
Plant Cell Reports May 2014
Topics: Biotechnology; China; Plants; Science
PubMed: 24700249
DOI: 10.1007/s00299-014-1607-6 -
Experimental Biology and Medicine... Mar 2019The plant synthetic biology field has exploded in the last five years, in part driven by techniques such as CRISPR and cheap DNA synthesis. This review summarizes the... (Review)
Review
The plant synthetic biology field has exploded in the last five years, in part driven by techniques such as CRISPR and cheap DNA synthesis. This review summarizes the current state of research in plant synthetic biology, and how it is being applied to two topics: renewable fuels and chemicals, and medicine.
Topics: Biofuels; Gene Editing; Medicine; Plants; Synthetic Biology; Vaccines
PubMed: 30249124
DOI: 10.1177/1535370218793890