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Journal of Integrative Agriculture  2021, Vol. 20 Issue (11): 2932-2943    DOI: 10.1016/S2095-3119(20)63472-4
Special Issue: 园艺-栽培生理/资源品质合辑Horticulture — Physiology · Biochemistry · Cultivation
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Potassium deficiency inhibits steviol glycosides synthesis by limiting leaf sugar metabolism in stevia (Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni) plants
SUN Yu-ming1, HUANG Xiao-lei2, ZHANG Ting1, YANG Yong-heng1, CHENG Xiao-fang3, XU Xiao-yang1, YUAN Hai-yan1
1 Jiangsu Key Laboratory for the Research and Utilization of Plant Resources/The Jiangsu Provincial Platform for Conservation and Utilization of Agricultural Germplasm, Institute of Botany, Jiangsu Province and Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210014, P.R.China
2 College of Resources and Environment, Shanxi Agricultural University, Taigu 030801, P.R.China
3 College of Arts and Sciences, Shanxi Agricultural University, Taigu 030801, P.R.China
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摘要  

甜菊叶片中的甜菊糖苷由于具有高甜度和低热量的特点而凸显价值,这推动了甜叶菊商业化种植的发展。优化施肥管理可以有效提高甜菊糖苷的生产力,但是目前关于钾肥与甜菊糖苷生产之间的关系尚不明确。本研究通过盆栽试验揭示了甜菊缺钾对叶片甜菊糖苷合成的影响并探索了其潜在机制。结果表明,在高钾土壤背景下,与常规施钾相比,不施钾肥对甜菊生物量没有显著影响。然而,不施钾肥显著降低了叶片中甜菊糖苷的含量以及甜菊糖苷合成相关基因的表达水平。在缺钾条件下,叶片中不同糖组分含量显著降低,糖代谢相关酶的活性受到抑制。此外,通过对甜菊幼苗叶片进行蔗糖喷施可以有效减弱缺钾造成的甜菊糖苷抑制作用。研究结果还揭示了甜菊叶片中蔗糖、葡萄糖与甜菊糖苷含量之间的显著正相关关系。综上所述,我们的研究结果表明缺钾会抑制甜菊叶片中甜菊糖苷合成,而这种抑制作用是由叶片糖代谢介导的。我们的发现为进一步提高甜菊糖苷的生产潜力提供了新的见解。




Abstract  
The steviol glycosides (SGs) in stevia (Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni) leaves are becoming increasingly valuable due to its high sweetness but low calorific value, which is driving the development of stevia commercial cultivation.  Optimizing fertilization management can effectively increase SGs productivity, but knowledge on the relationship between potassium (K) fertilization and SGs production is still lacking.  In this study, pot experiments were conducted in order to investigate the effect of K deficiency on SGs synthesis in stevia leaves, as well as the underlying mechanisms.  Our results showed that when compared with standard K fertilization, K deficiency treatment has no significant effect on the biomass of stevia plant grown in a given soil with high K contents.  However, K deficiency critically decreased leaf SGs contents as well as the expression of SGs synthesis-related genes.  The contents of different sugar components decreased and the activities of sugar metabolism-related enzymes were inhibited under the K deficiency condition.  Moreover, spraying sucrose on the leaves of stevia seedlings diminished the inhibitory effect caused by K deficiency.  Our results also revealed the significant positive correlations between sucrose, glucose and SGs contents.  Overall, our results suggest that K deficiency would suppress the synthesis of SGs in stevia leaves, and this effect may be mediated by the leaf sugar metabolism.  Our findings provide new insights into the improvement of SGs production potential. 
 
Keywords:  Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni        steviol glycosides        potassium deficiency        sugar metabolism  
Received: 27 April 2020   Accepted:
Fund: This work was supported by the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province, China (BK20180312), the Jiangsu Key Laboratory for the Research and Utilization of Plant Resources, China (JSPKLB201810) and the Natural Science Foundation of Shanxi Province, China (201901D111230).
Corresponding Authors:  Correspondence XU Xiao-yang, E-mail: intergoogle@126.com; YUAN Hai-yan, E-mail: yuanhaiyan416@163.com   
About author:  SUN Yu-ming, E-mail: sunyumingagw@163.com;

Cite this article: 

SUN Yu-ming, HUANG Xiao-lei, ZHANG Ting, YANG Yong-heng, CHENG Xiao-fang, XU Xiao-yang, YUAN Hai-yan. 2021. Potassium deficiency inhibits steviol glycosides synthesis by limiting leaf sugar metabolism in stevia (Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni) plants. Journal of Integrative Agriculture, 20(11): 2932-2943.

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