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Journal of Integrative Agriculture  2026, Vol. 25 Issue (4): 1531-1543    DOI: 10.1016/j.jia.2025.11.002
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Cloning and functional characterization of 1-deoxy-d-xylulose 5-phosphate reductoisomerase (LiDXR) gene in oriental lily (Lilium ‘Sorbonne’)

Xinyue Zhang, Jingqi Dai, Fan Jiang, Tao Yang, Jinzhu Zhang, Jie Dong, Jinping Fan#

College of Horticulture & Landscape Architecture, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin 150030, China

 Highlights 
Virus-induced gene silencing (VIGS)-mediated suppression of LiDXR specifically downregulated monoterpenoid synthase genes TPS1/3/4, without affecting the sesquiterpenoid synthase TPS2, revealing a selective regulatory mechanism in lily floral scent biosynthesis.
LiDXR functions as a key rate-limiting enzyme in the methylerythritol phosphate (MEP) pathway, with peak expression in petals at the semi-open floral stage, aligning with the temporal dynamics of terpenoid emission in lily.
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摘要  花香是园林植物重要的观赏形态。萜类化合物中的单萜类是百合花香的主要成分。1-脱氧-D-木酮糖-5-磷酸还原异构酶(DXR)参与了甲基赤藓糖醇磷酸(MEP)途径的第二酶促反应,负责单萜的合成。然而,DXR基因在索邦百合花单萜合成途径中的作用尚不清楚。本研究以东方百合‘索邦’为实验材料,利用早期转录组学数据选择差异表达的LiDXR基因。结果表明,这与百合花期花物质从合成到终止的速率过程具有较高的一致性。因此,我们克隆了LiDXR基因并进行了生物信息学分析,共编码472个氨基酸。LiDXR基因在索邦半开放期表达量最高,花瓣中LiDXR基因的表达量显著高于其他花器官。亚细胞定位结果表明,LiDXR蛋白定位于叶片表皮细胞叶绿体中。病毒诱导的基因沉默(VIGS)实验表明,沉默LiDXR可以通过下调MEP通路下游TPS基因的表达来降低单萜烯水平。同时,HS-SPME-GC-MS分析结果显示,沉默处理后百合花总挥发性萜含量显著降低。过表达植株拟南芥和矮牵牛的结果表明,转基因植株生长潜力更强,开花时间提前。GC-MS结果表明,转基因牵牛花的挥发性总萜含量比野生型高78%。LiDXR基因的过表达会影响MEP通路基因的表达水平,进而影响MEP通路下游包括单萜在内的萜类物质的合成。本研究旨在分析LiDXR基因的功能,为百合及观赏植物的花香育种提供理论依据。




Abstract  

Floral scent is an important ornamental trait in garden plants.  Monoterpenes, a major class of terpenoids, constitute the primary volatile components of lily floral scents.  1-Deoxy-D-xylulose 5-phosphate reductoisomerase (DXR) catalyzes the second enzymatic step in the MEP pathway, which supplies precursors for monoterpene biosynthesis.  However, the functional role of the DXR gene in floral monoterpene production in Lilium Oriental Hybrid ‘Sorbonne’ remains unclear.  In this study, ‘Sorbonne’ was used as the experimental material, and a differentially expressed LiDXR gene was identified from early transcriptomic data, showing high temporal correlation with the synthesis and emission dynamics of floral volatiles during flowering.  The LiDXR gene was cloned and subjected to bioinformatics analysis, revealing that it encodes a protein of 472 amino acids.  LiDXR expression peaked at the half-open floral stage and was significantly higher in petals than in other floral organs.  Subcellular localization analysis indicated that the LiDXR protein is targeted to chloroplasts in leaf epidermal cells.  VIGS of LiDXR reduced monoterpene levels by downregulating the expression of downstream TPS genes in the MEP pathway.  Consistently, headspace solid-phase microextraction coupled with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (HS-SPME-GC-MS) revealed a significant decrease in total volatile terpene content in silenced lilies.  Transgenic Arabidopsis thaliana and petunia plants overexpressing LiDXR exhibited enhanced growth vigor and accelerated flowering.  GC-Murashige and Skoog’s (MS) analysis of transgenic petunias showed a 78% increase in total volatile terpenes compared to wild-type plants.  Overexpression of LiDXR also modulated the expression of other MEP pathway genes, thereby influencing the biosynthesis of downstream terpenoids, including monoterpenes.  This study elucidates the functional role of LiDXR in terpenoid metabolism and provides a theoretical foundation for floral scent breeding in lily and other ornamental plants.

Keywords:  Lilium       floral       monoterpene       LiDXR  
Received: 14 June 2024   Accepted: 08 April 2025 Online: 07 November 2025  
Fund: 

This research was supported by the Key Research and Development Program of the Ministry of Science and Technology, China (2016YFC0500306-02) and the Project of the Science and Technology Department of Heilongjiang Province, China (C2017030).

About author:  Xinyue Zhang, E-mail: 13734523745@163.com; #Correspondence Jinping Fan, E-mail: jinpingfan@neau.edu.cn

Cite this article: 

Xinyue Zhang, Jingqi Dai, Fan Jiang, Tao Yang, Jinzhu Zhang, Jie Dong, Jinping Fan. 2026. Cloning and functional characterization of 1-deoxy-d-xylulose 5-phosphate reductoisomerase (LiDXR) gene in oriental lily (Lilium ‘Sorbonne’). Journal of Integrative Agriculture, 25(4): 1531-1543.

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