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Identification and comparative expression analysis of chalcone synthase, flavanone 3-hydroxylase and dihydroflavonol 4-reductase genes in wild pomegranate (Punica granatum L.) organs

  • Genetics & Evolutionary Biology - Original Article
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Abstract

Flavonoids are the predominant polyphenolic compounds which are ubiquitously present in plants, responsible for the colour development in different plant parts, thereby playing an important role in plant physiology. In order to understand chemo-diversity and biological functions of flavonoids, it is important to understand flavonoid biosynthetic pathway that involves various structural genes. Three structural genes of flavonoid biosynthetic pathway, chalcone synthase (PgCHS; GenBank accession no: KY498075), flavanone 3-hydroxylase (PgF3H; GenBank accession no: MG012857) and dihydroflavonol 4-reductase (PgDFR; GenBank accession no: MG366127) were isolated and characterized from the wild Punica granatum. Molecular modelling indicated that the secondary structures of PgCHS, PgF3H and PgDFR are mainly α-helix and random coils. HPLC analysis of flavonoids showed its accumulation in different tissues and fruits, thus corroborating well with the expression profile of PgCHS, PgF3H and PgDFR genes. PgF3H and PgDFR genes exhibited high transcripts levels in red fruits while expression of Pg CHS gene was highest in flowers. Further, it is speculated that expression of all these structural genes is independent of each other. This is the first study that provides a comparative expression pattern of flavonoid genes playing a significant role in fruit ripening in wild pomegranate.

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Acknowledgements

Authors are thankful to School of Biotechnology, University of Jammu for providing basic facilities. RK acknowledges Innovation in Science Pursuit for Inspired Research (INSPIRE), Government of India, Ministry of Science and Technology, New Delhi, for fellowship. We are also thankful to Dr. Shahzad A. Pandith (INSPIRE faculty, University of Kashmir), for providing necessary guidance throughout the work.

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  1. School of Biotechnology, University of Jammu, Jammu, Jammu & Kashmir, India

    Ramanjeet Kaur, Lubna Aslam, Nisha Kapoor & Ritu Mahajan

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All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Material preparation, data collection and analysis were performed by Ramanjeet Kaur, Ritu Mahajan, Lubna Aslam and Nisha Kapoor. The first draft of the manuscript was written by Ramanjeet Kaur and Ritu Mahajan and all authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Kaur, R., Aslam, L., Kapoor, N. et al. Identification and comparative expression analysis of chalcone synthase, flavanone 3-hydroxylase and dihydroflavonol 4-reductase genes in wild pomegranate (Punica granatum L.) organs. Braz. J. Bot 43, 883–896 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40415-020-00648-x

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