OSC2 and CYP716A14v2 catalyze the biosynthesis of triterpenoids for the cuticle of aerial organs of Artemisia annua.

Artemisia annua is widely studied for its ability to accumulate the antimalarial sesquiterpenoid artemisinin. In addition to producing a variety of sesquiterpenoids, A. annua also accumulates mono-, di-, and triterpenoids, the majority of which are produced in the glandular trichomes. A. annua also has filamentous trichomes on its aerial parts, but little is known of their biosynthesis potential. Here, through a comparative transcriptome analysis between glandular and filamentous trichomes, we identified two genes, OSC2 and CYP716A14v2, encoding enzymes involved in the biosynthesis of specialized triterpenoids in A. annua. By expressing these genes in Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Nicotiana benthamiana, we characterized the catalytic function of these proteins and could reconstitute the specialized triterpenoid spectrum of A. annua in these heterologous hosts. OSC2 is a multifunctional oxidosqualene cyclase that produces α-amyrin, ß-amyrin, and δ-amyrin. CYP716A14v2 is a P450 belonging to the functionally diverse CYP716 family and catalyzes the oxidation of pentacyclic triterpenes, leading to triterpenes with a carbonyl group at position C-3, thereby providing an alternative biosynthesis pathway to 3-oxo triterpenes. Together, these enzymes produce specialized triterpenoids that are constituents of the wax layer of the cuticle covering the aerial parts of A. annua and likely function in the protection of the plant against biotic and abiotic stress.

Differential transcriptome analysis of glandular and filamentous trichomes in Artemisia annua.

BACKGROUND: The medicinal plant Artemisia annua is covered with filamentous trichomes and glandular, artemisinin producing trichomes. A high artemisinin supply is needed at a reduced cost for treating malaria. Artemisinin production in bioreactors can be facilitated if a better insight is obtained in the biosynthesis of artemisinin and other metabolites. Therefore, metabolic activities of glandular and filamentous trichomes were investigated at the transcriptome level. RESULTS: By laser pressure catapulting, glandular and filamentous trichomes as well as apical and sub-apical cells from glandular trichomes were collected and their transcriptome was sequenced using Illumina RNA-Seq. A de novo transcriptome was assembled (Trinity) and studied with a differential expression analysis (edgeR).A comparison of the transcriptome from glandular and filamentous trichomes shows that MEP, MVA, most terpene and lipid biosynthesis pathways are significantly upregulated in glandular trichomes. Conversely, some transcripts coding for specific sesquiterpenoid and triterpenoid enzymes such as 8-epi-cedrol synthase and an uncharacterized oxidosqualene cyclase were significantly upregulated in filamentous trichomes. All known artemisinin biosynthesis genes are upregulated in glandular trichomes and were detected in both the apical and sub-apical cells of the glandular trichomes. No significant differential expression could be observed between the apical and sub-apical cells. CONCLUSIONS: Our results underscore the vast metabolic capacities of A. annua glandular trichomes but nonetheless point to the existence of specific terpene metabolic pathways in the filamentous trichomes. Candidate genes that might be involved in artemisinin biosynthesis are proposed based on their putative function and their differential expression level.

The prevalence of nine genetic disorders in a dog population from Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany.

The objective of this study was to screen a dog population from Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany for the presence of mutant alleles associated with hip dysplasia (HD), degenerative myelopathy (DM), exercise-induced collapse (EIC), neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis 4A (NCL), centronuclear myopathy (HMLR), mucopolysaccharidosis VII (MPS VII), myotonia congenita (MG), gangliosidosis (GM1) and muscular dystrophy (Duchenne type) (GRMD). Blood samples (K3EDTA) were collected for genotyping with Kompetitive Allele Specific PCR (n = 476). Allele and genotype frequencies were calculated in those breeds with at least 12 samples (n = 8). Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium was tested. Genetic variation was identified for 4 out of 9 disorders: mutant alleles were found in 49, 15, 3 and 2 breeds for HD, DM, EIC and NCL respectively. Additionally, mutant alleles were identified in crossbreeds for both HD and EIC. For HD, DM, EIC and NCL mutant alleles were newly discovered in 43, 13, 2 and 1 breed(s), respectively. In 9, 2 and 1 breed(s) for DM, EIC and NCL respectively, the mutant allele was detected, but the respective disorder has not been reported in those breeds. For 5 disorders (HMLR, MPS VII, MG, GM1, GRMD), the mutant allele could not be identified in our population. For the other 4 disorders (HD, DM, EIC, NCL), prevalence of associated mutant alleles seems strongly breed dependent. Surprisingly, mutant alleles were found in many breeds where the disorder has not been reported to date.

Quantitative bias in Illumina TruSeq and a novel post amplification barcoding strategy for multiplexed DNA and small RNA deep sequencing.

Here we demonstrate a method for unbiased multiplexed deep sequencing of RNA and DNA libraries using a novel, efficient and adaptable barcoding strategy called Post Amplification Ligation-Mediated (PALM). PALM barcoding is performed as the very last step of library preparation, eliminating a potential barcode-induced bias and allowing the flexibility to synthesize as many barcodes as needed. We sequenced PALM barcoded micro RNA (miRNA) and DNA reference samples and evaluated the quantitative barcode-induced bias in comparison to the same reference samples prepared using the Illumina TruSeq barcoding strategy. The Illumina TruSeq small RNA strategy introduces the barcode during the PCR step using differentially barcoded primers, while the TruSeq DNA strategy introduces the barcode before the PCR step by ligation of differentially barcoded adaptors. Results show virtually no bias between the differentially barcoded miRNA and DNA samples, both for the PALM and the TruSeq sample preparation methods. We also multiplexed miRNA reference samples using a pre-PCR barcode ligation. This barcoding strategy results in significant bias.