KEGG(Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes)〔和文〕 (特集 ゲノム医学の現在と未来--基礎と臨床) -- (データベース)

The agriGO platform, which has been serving the scientific community for >10 years, specifically focuses on gene ontology (GO) enrichment analyses of plant and agricultural species. We continuously maintain and update the databases and accommodate the various requests of our global users. Here, we present our updated agriGO that has a largely expanded number of supporting species (394) and datatypes (865). In addition, a larger number of species have been classified into groups covering crops, vegetables, fish, birds and insects closely related to the agricultural community. We further improved the computational efficiency, including the batch analysis and P-value distribution (PVD), and the user-friendliness of the web pages. More visualization features were added to the platform, including SEACOMPARE (cross comparison of singular enrichment analysis), direct acyclic graph (DAG) and Scatter Plots, which can be merged by choosing any significant GO term. The updated platform agriGO v2.0 is now publicly accessible at http://systemsbiology.cau.edu.cn/agriGOv2/.

agriGO v2.0: a GO analysis toolkit for the agricultural community, 2017 update.

Cloning and characterization of the

Differentiation and secondary metabolism are correlated processes in fungi that respond to light. In
Aspergillus nidulans
, light inhibits sexual reproduction as well as secondary metabolism. We identified
the heterotrimeric
velvet
complex VelB/VeA/LaeA connecting light-responding developmental
regulation and control of secondary metabolism. VeA, which is primarily expressed in the dark,
physically interacts with VelB, which is expressed during sexual development. VeA bridges VelB to the
nuclear master regulator of secondary metabolism, LaeA. Deletion of either
velB
or
veA
results in
defects in both sexual fruiting-body formation and the production of secondary metabolites.

VelB/VeA/LaeA Complex CoordinatesLight Signal with Fungal Developmentand Secondary Metabolism

Molecular activities, biosynthesis and evolution of triterpenoid saponins.

Herb Genome Program (HerbGP) includes a series of projects on whole genome sequencing (WGS) and post-genomics research of medicinal plants with unique secondary metabolism pathways or/and those of great medical and pharmaceutical importance. In this paper, we systematically discussed the strategy of HerbGP, from species selection, whole-genome sequencing, assembly and bioinformatics analysis, to postgenomics research. HerbGP will push study on Chinese traditional medicines into the front field of life science, by selecting a series of plants with unique secondary metabolism pathways as models and introducing "omics" methods into the research of these medicinal plants. HerbGP will provide great opportunities for China to be the leader in the basic research field of traditional Chinese medicine. HerbGP shall also have significant impacts on the R&D of natural medicines and the development of medicinal farming by analysis of secondary metabolic pathways and selection of cultivars with good agricultural traits.

Strategies of the study on herb genome program

Background: Little genomic or trancriptomic information on Ganoderma lucidum (Lingzhi) is known. This study aims to discover the transcripts involved in secondary metabolite biosynthesis and developmental regulation of G. lucidum using an expressed sequence tag (EST) library. Methods: A cDNA library was constructed from the G. lucidum fruiting body. Its high-quality ESTs were assembled into unique sequences with contigs and singletons. The unique sequences were annotated according to sequence similarities to genes or proteins available in public databases. The detection of simple sequence repeats (SSRs) was preformed by online analysis. Results: A total of 1,023 clones were randomly selected from the G. lucidum library and sequenced, yielding 879 high-quality ESTs. These ESTs showed similarities to a diverse range of genes. The sequences encoding squalene epoxidase (SE) and farnesyl-diphosphate synthase (FPS) were identified in this EST collection. Several candidate genes, such as hydrophobin, MOB2, profilin and PHO84 were detected for the first time in G. lucidum. Thirteen (13) potential SSR-motif microsatellite loci were also identified. Conclusion: The present study demonstrates a successful application of EST analysis in the discovery of transcripts involved in the secondary metabolite biosynthesis and the developmental regulation of G. lucidum.

/pdf/generation-and-analysis-of-expressed-sequence-tags-from-a-3aphfcp9en.pdf

Generation and analysis of expressed sequence tags from a cDNA library of the fruiting body of Ganoderma lucidum

Background
Quantitative real-time reverse transcription PCR (qRT-PCR) requires a stable internal control to avoid misinterpretation of data or errors for gene expression normalization. However, there are still no validated reference genes for stable internal control in Poria cocos (Schw.) Wolf (Fuling). This study aims to validate the reference genes of P. cocos.

/pdf/selection-and-validation-of-reference-genes-for-2tbk6raubn.pdf

Selection and validation of reference genes for normalization of quantitative real-time reverse transcription PCR analysis in Poria cocos (Schw.) Wolf (Fuling)

ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters have been found to play important roles in metabolic transport in plant cells, influencing subcellular compartmentalisation and tissue distribution of these metabolic compounds. Salvia miltiorrhiza Bunge, known as Danshen in traditional Chinese medicine, is a highly valued medicinal plant used to treat cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. The dry roots and rhizomes of S. miltiorrhiza contain biologically active secondary metabolites of tanshinone and salvianolic acid. Given an assembled and annotated genome and a set of transcriptome data of S. miltiorrhiza, we analysed and identified the candidate genes that likely involved in the bioactive metabolite transportation of this medicinal plant, starting with the members of the ABC transporter family. A total of 114 genes encoding ABC transporters were identified in the genome of S. miltiorrhiza. All of these ABC genes were divided into eight subfamilies: 3ABCA, 31ABCB, 14ABCC, 2ABCD, 1ABCE, 7ABCF, 46ABCG, and 10 ABCI. Gene expression analysis revealed tissue-specific expression profiles of these ABC transporters. In particular, we found 18 highly expressed transporters in the roots of S. miltiorrhiza, which might be involved in transporting the bioactive compounds of this medicinal plant. We further investigated the co-expression profiling of these 18 genes with key enzyme genes involved in tanshinone and salvianolic acid biosynthetic pathways using quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR). From this RT-qPCR validation, we found that three ABC genes (SmABCG46, SmABCG40, and SmABCG4) and another gene (SmABCC1) co-expressed with the key biosynthetic enzymes of these two compounds, respectively, and thus might be involved in tanshinone and salvianolic acid transport in root cells. In addition, we predicted the biological functions of S. miltiorrhiza ABC transporters using phylogenetic relationships and analysis of the transcriptome to find biological functions. Here, we present the first systematic analysis of ABC transporters in S. miltiorrhiza and predict candidate transporters involved in bioactive compound transportation in this important medicinal plant. Using genome-wide identification, transcriptome profile analysis, and phylogenetic relationships, this research provides a new perspective on the critical functions of ABC transporters in S. miltiorrhiza.

/pdf/genome-wide-analysis-of-atp-binding-cassette-transporter-32jobtyecs.pdf

Genome-wide analysis of ATP-binding cassette transporter provides insight to genes related to bioactive metabolite transportation in Salvia miltiorrhiza.

Root-knot nematodes (RKNs, Meloidogyne spp.) are damaging pests that can infect thousands of plant species and cause enormous crop losses worldwide. Panax notoginseng is a common host of root-knot nematodes. In this study, we surveyed notoginseng gardens and determined the incidence of RKNs. Among the gardens surveyed, 71 % were infected with RKNs, and the RKN incidence index ranged from 8 % to 47 % in three randomly infected gardens. Meloidogyne hapla was identified as the pathogenic nematode based on 18S ribosomal RNA analysis by DNA barcoding. The results were qualitatively and quantitatively confirmed using a real-time PCR assay according to variations in the ITS1 and ITS2 regions. These results indicated that the combination of DNA barcoding and real-time PCR is a reliable and precise method for identifying parasitic nematodes from mixed-infected plant roots in the field. In addition, the abundance of ITS1 and ITS2 displayed a similar trend to the numbers of RKNs in the three gardens, which suggests that the results of real-time PCR can be used to determine the damage caused by M. hapla in the field. Our studies show that RKNs are common and can cause serious damage to notoginseng. We present an integrated method of detecting mixed nematode species in the field and confirm M. hapla as the target for parasitic nematode control in notoginseng gardens. Our results contribute to the improvement of RKN control in notoginseng and further promote the sustainable development of medicinal plants.

Hongmei Luo

Papers

Strategies of the study on herb genome program

Generation and analysis of expressed sequence tags from a cDNA library of the fruiting body of Ganoderma lucidum

Selection and validation of reference genes for normalization of quantitative real-time reverse transcription PCR analysis in Poria cocos (Schw.) Wolf (Fuling)

Genome-wide analysis of ATP-binding cassette transporter provides insight to genes related to bioactive metabolite transportation in Salvia miltiorrhiza.

Investigation and integrated molecular diagnosis of root-knot nematodes in Panax notoginseng root in the field