MdUGT88F1-mediated phloridzin biosynthesis coordinates carbon and nitrogen accumulation in apple
Kun Zhou, Lingyu Hu, Hong Yue, Zhijun Zhang, Jingyun Zhang, Xiaoqing Gong, and Fengwang Ma
Journal of Experimental Botany
DOI: 10.1093/jxb/erab410
Abstract
The high accumulation of phloridzin makes apple (Malus domestica) unique in the plant kingdom, which suggests a vital role of its biosynthesis in the physiological processes of apple. In our previous study, silencing MdUGT88F1 (a key UDP-glucose: phloretin 2'-O-glucosyltransferase gene) revealed the importance of phloridzin biosynthesis in apple development and Valsa canker resistance. Here, results from MdUGT88F1-silencing lines showed that phloridzin biosynthesis was indispensable for normal chloroplast development and photosynthetic carbon fixation by maintaining MdGLK1/2 expression. Interestingly, the increased phloridzin biosynthesis didn't affect plant (or chloroplast) development but reduced nitrogen accumulation, leading to chlorophyll deficiency, light sensitivity, and sugar accumulation in MdUGT88F1-overexpressing apple lines during their growth and development. Further analysis revealed that MdUGT88F1-mediated phloridzin biosynthesis negatively regulated cytosolic glutamine synthetase1-asparagine synthetase-asparaginase (GS1-AS-ASPG) pathway of ammonium assimilation and limited chlorophyll synthesis in the shoots of apple. The interference of phloridzin biosynthesis in the GS1-AS-ASPG pathway was also assumed to be associated with its limitation of the carbon skeletons of ammonium assimilation through metabolic competition with the tricarboxylic acid cycle. Taken together, our findings shed light on the role of MdUGT88F1-mediated phloridzin biosynthesis in the coordination between carbon and nitrogen accumulation in apple trees.