DOE PAGES title logo U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Title: Transgenic approaches to altering carbon and nitrogen partitioning in whole plants: assessing the potential to improve crop yields and nutritional quality

Abstract

The principal components of plant productivity and nutritional value, from the standpoint of modern agriculture, are the acquisition and partitioning of organic carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) compounds among the various organs of the plant. The flow of essential organic nutrients among the plant organ systems is mediated by its complex vascular system, and is driven by a series of transport steps including export from sites of primary assimilation, transport into and out of the phloem and xylem, and transport into the various import-dependent organs. Manipulating C and N partitioning to enhance yield of harvested organs is evident in the earliest crop domestication events and continues to be a goal for modern plant biology. Research on the biochemistry, molecular and cellular biology, and physiology of C and N partitioning has now matured to an extent that strategic manipulation of these transport systems through biotechnology are being attempted to improve movement from source to sink tissues in general, but also to target partitioning to specific organs. These nascent efforts are demonstrating the potential of applied biomass targeting but are also identifying interactions between essential nutrients that require further basic research. In this review, we summarize the key transport steps involved inmore » C and N partitioning, and discuss various transgenic approaches for directly manipulating key C and N transporters involved. In addition, we propose several experiments that could enhance biomass accumulation in targeted organs while simultaneously testing current partitioning models.« less

Authors:
 [1];  [1];  [2]
  1. Univ. of North Texas, Denton, TX (United States). Dept. of Biological Sciences
  2. Colorado State Univ., Fort Collins, CO (United States)
Publication Date:
Research Org.:
Colorado State Univ., Fort Collins, CO (United States)
Sponsoring Org.:
USDOE
OSTI Identifier:
1184807
Grant/Contract Number:  
FG02-08ER64629
Resource Type:
Accepted Manuscript
Journal Name:
Frontiers in Plant Science
Additional Journal Information:
Journal Volume: 6; Journal ID: ISSN 1664-462X
Publisher:
Frontiers Research Foundation
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES

Citation Formats

Yadav, Umesh P., Ayre, Brian G., and Bush, Daniel R. Transgenic approaches to altering carbon and nitrogen partitioning in whole plants: assessing the potential to improve crop yields and nutritional quality. United States: N. p., 2015. Web. doi:10.3389/fpls.2015.00275.
Yadav, Umesh P., Ayre, Brian G., & Bush, Daniel R. Transgenic approaches to altering carbon and nitrogen partitioning in whole plants: assessing the potential to improve crop yields and nutritional quality. United States. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2015.00275
Yadav, Umesh P., Ayre, Brian G., and Bush, Daniel R. Wed . "Transgenic approaches to altering carbon and nitrogen partitioning in whole plants: assessing the potential to improve crop yields and nutritional quality". United States. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2015.00275. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1184807.
@article{osti_1184807,
title = {Transgenic approaches to altering carbon and nitrogen partitioning in whole plants: assessing the potential to improve crop yields and nutritional quality},
author = {Yadav, Umesh P. and Ayre, Brian G. and Bush, Daniel R.},
abstractNote = {The principal components of plant productivity and nutritional value, from the standpoint of modern agriculture, are the acquisition and partitioning of organic carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) compounds among the various organs of the plant. The flow of essential organic nutrients among the plant organ systems is mediated by its complex vascular system, and is driven by a series of transport steps including export from sites of primary assimilation, transport into and out of the phloem and xylem, and transport into the various import-dependent organs. Manipulating C and N partitioning to enhance yield of harvested organs is evident in the earliest crop domestication events and continues to be a goal for modern plant biology. Research on the biochemistry, molecular and cellular biology, and physiology of C and N partitioning has now matured to an extent that strategic manipulation of these transport systems through biotechnology are being attempted to improve movement from source to sink tissues in general, but also to target partitioning to specific organs. These nascent efforts are demonstrating the potential of applied biomass targeting but are also identifying interactions between essential nutrients that require further basic research. In this review, we summarize the key transport steps involved in C and N partitioning, and discuss various transgenic approaches for directly manipulating key C and N transporters involved. In addition, we propose several experiments that could enhance biomass accumulation in targeted organs while simultaneously testing current partitioning models.},
doi = {10.3389/fpls.2015.00275},
journal = {Frontiers in Plant Science},
number = ,
volume = 6,
place = {United States},
year = {Wed Apr 22 00:00:00 EDT 2015},
month = {Wed Apr 22 00:00:00 EDT 2015}
}

Journal Article:
Free Publicly Available Full Text
Publisher's Version of Record

Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 60 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

Save / Share:

Works referenced in this record:

Imaging and tracing of intracellular metabolites utilizing genetically encoded fluorescent biosensors
journal, September 2013


Application of imaging mass spectrometry for the analysis of Oryza sativa rice
journal, August 2010

  • Zaima, Nobuhiro; Goto-Inoue, Naoko; Hayasaka, Takahiro
  • Rapid Communications in Mass Spectrometry, Vol. 24, Issue 18
  • DOI: 10.1002/rcm.4693

Localization of galactinol, raffinose, and stachyose synthesis in Cucurbita pepo leaves
journal, October 1992


Sugar synthesis and phloem loading in Coleus blumei leaves
journal, June 1992


BAT1, a bidirectional amino acid transporter in Arabidopsis
journal, February 2009


Expression and transcriptional regulation of amino acid transporters in plants
journal, March 2006


Functional analysis of LjSUT4, a vacuolar sucrose transporter from Lotus japonicus
journal, July 2008

  • Reinders, Anke; Sivitz, Alicia B.; Starker, Colby G.
  • Plant Molecular Biology, Vol. 68, Issue 3
  • DOI: 10.1007/s11103-008-9370-0

MRI of intact plants
journal, August 2009

  • Van As, Henk; Scheenen, Tom; Vergeldt, Frank J.
  • Photosynthesis Research, Vol. 102, Issue 2-3
  • DOI: 10.1007/s11120-009-9486-3

The monosaccharide transporter(-like) gene family in Arabidopsis
journal, March 2007


Molecular physiology of higher plant sucrose transporters
journal, March 2007


Transporters for amino acids in plant cells: some functions and many unknowns
journal, June 2012


Current perspectives on the regulation of whole-plant carbohydrate partitioning
journal, April 2010


Lipidomics in situ: Insights into plant lipid metabolism from high resolution spatial maps of metabolites
journal, April 2014


Function and regulation of plant invertases: sweet sensations
journal, December 2004


Amino acid transporters in plants
journal, May 2000

  • Ortiz-Lopez, A.; Chang, H. -C; Bush, D. R.
  • Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) - Biomembranes, Vol. 1465, Issue 1-2
  • DOI: 10.1016/s0005-2736(00)00144-9

Intercellular Connections Are Developmentally Controlled to Help Move Molecules through the Plant
journal, July 1999


Simple, but Not Branched, Plasmodesmata Allow the Nonspecific Trafficking of Proteins in Developing Tobacco Leaves
journal, June 1999


Phloem loading and plasmodesmata
journal, December 1996


Amino acid transport in plants
journal, May 1998


Entering the second century of maize quantitative genetics
journal, March 2013

  • Wallace, J. G.; Larsson, S. J.; Buckler, E. S.
  • Heredity, Vol. 112, Issue 1
  • DOI: 10.1038/hdy.2013.6

Sugar transporters for intercellular exchange and nutrition of pathogens
journal, November 2010

  • Chen, Li-Qing; Hou, Bi-Huei; Lalonde, Sylvie
  • Nature, Vol. 468, Issue 7323
  • DOI: 10.1038/nature09606

Evolution of crop species: genetics of domestication and diversification
journal, November 2013

  • Meyer, Rachel S.; Purugganan, Michael D.
  • Nature Reviews Genetics, Vol. 14, Issue 12
  • DOI: 10.1038/nrg3605

Seed-specific overexpression of a potato sucrose transporter increases sucrose uptake and growth rates of developing pea cotyledons
journal, April 2002


Control improves with age: Intercellular transport in plant embryos and adults
journal, January 2005

  • Ueki, Shoko; Citovsky, Vitaly
  • Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Vol. 102, Issue 6
  • DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0409785102

Detection of glutamate release from neurons by genetically encoded surface-displayed FRET nanosensors
journal, June 2005

  • Okumoto, S.; Looger, L. L.; Micheva, K. D.
  • Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Vol. 102, Issue 24
  • DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0503274102

Phloem loading in Verbascum phoeniceum L. depends on the synthesis of raffinose-family oligosaccharides
journal, December 2007

  • McCaskill, Ashlee; Turgeon, Robert
  • Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Vol. 104, Issue 49
  • DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0707368104

A comprehensive picture of phloem loading strategies
journal, July 2009

  • Rennie, E. A.; Turgeon, R.
  • Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Vol. 106, Issue 33
  • DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0902279106

Sucrose-mediated transcriptional regulation of sucrose symporter activity in the phloem
journal, July 2002

  • Vaughn, M. W.; Harrington, G. N.; Bush, D. R.
  • Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Vol. 99, Issue 16
  • DOI: 10.1073/pnas.172198599

The absence of phloem loading in willow leaves
journal, September 1998

  • Turgeon, R.; Medville, R.
  • Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Vol. 95, Issue 20
  • DOI: 10.1073/pnas.95.20.12055

Distinct Properties of the Five UDP-d-glucose/UDP-d-galactose 4-Epimerase Isoforms of Arabidopsis thaliana
journal, April 2006

  • Barber, Christine; Rösti, Johannes; Rawat, Arun
  • Journal of Biological Chemistry, Vol. 281, Issue 25
  • DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m512727200

Compartmentation of transport and transfer events in developing seeds
journal, April 2001


Transport and metabolism of raffinose family oligosaccharides in transgenic potato
journal, September 2006

  • Hannah, M. A.; Zuther, E.; Buchel, K.
  • Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol. 57, Issue 14
  • DOI: 10.1093/jxb/erl152

Intracellular sucrose communicates metabolic demand to sucrose transporters in developing pea cotyledons
journal, October 2008

  • Zhou, Yuchan; Chan, Katie; Wang, Trevor L.
  • Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol. 60, Issue 1
  • DOI: 10.1093/jxb/ern254

Evidence for functional heterogeneity of sieve element–companion cell complexes in minor vein phloem of Alonsoa meridionalis
journal, March 2009

  • Voitsekhovskaja, Olga V.; Rudashevskaya, Elena L.; Demchenko, Kirill N.
  • Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol. 60, Issue 6
  • DOI: 10.1093/jxb/erp074

Arabidopsis SUC1 loads the phloem in suc2 mutants when expressed from the SUC2 promoter
journal, October 2011

  • Wippel, Kathrin; Sauer, Norbert
  • Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol. 63, Issue 2
  • DOI: 10.1093/jxb/err255

Understanding and manipulating sucrose phloem loading, unloading, metabolism, and signalling to enhance crop yield and food security
journal, December 2013

  • Braun, D. M.; Wang, L.; Ruan, Y. -L.
  • Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol. 65, Issue 7
  • DOI: 10.1093/jxb/ert416

Transporters involved in source to sink partitioning of amino acids and ureides: opportunities for crop improvement
journal, January 2014


Functional Characterization and RNAi-Mediated Suppression Reveals Roles for Hexose Transporters in Sugar Accumulation by Tomato Fruit
journal, November 2010

  • McCurdy, David W.; Dibley, Stephen; Cahyanegara, Ricky
  • Molecular Plant, Vol. 3, Issue 6
  • DOI: 10.1093/mp/ssq050

Membrane-Transport Systems for Sucrose in Relation to Whole-Plant Carbon Partitioning
journal, May 2011


Cloning, Expression, and Characterization of Sorbitol Transporters from Developing Sour Cherry Fruit and Leaf Sink Tissues
journal, March 2003

  • Gao, Zhifang; Maurousset, Laurence; Lemoine, Remi
  • Plant Physiology, Vol. 131, Issue 4
  • DOI: 10.1104/pp.102.016725

Ectopic Expression of an Amino Acid Transporter (VfAAP1) in Seeds of Vicia narbonensis and Pea Increases Storage Proteins
journal, April 2005

  • Rolletschek, Hardy; Hosein, Felicia; Miranda, Manoela
  • Plant Physiology, Vol. 137, Issue 4
  • DOI: 10.1104/pp.104.056523

Identification of a Vacuolar Sucrose Transporter in Barley and Arabidopsis Mesophyll Cells by a Tonoplast Proteomic Approach
journal, March 2006

  • Endler, Anne; Meyer, Stefan; Schelbert, Silvia
  • Plant Physiology, Vol. 141, Issue 1
  • DOI: 10.1104/pp.106.079533

A Shift of Phloem Unloading from Symplasmic to Apoplasmic Pathway Is Involved in Developmental Onset of Ripening in Grape Berry
journal, July 2006

  • Zhang, Xiao-Yan; Wang, Xiu-Ling; Wang, Xiao-Fang
  • Plant Physiology, Vol. 142, Issue 1
  • DOI: 10.1104/pp.106.081430

Global Transcript Levels Respond to Small Changes of the Carbon Status during Progressive Exhaustion of Carbohydrates in Arabidopsis Rosettes
journal, February 2008

  • Usadel, Björn; Bläsing, Oliver E.; Gibon, Yves
  • Plant Physiology, Vol. 146, Issue 4
  • DOI: 10.1104/pp.107.115592

Genetic Control of Carbon Partitioning in Grasses: Roles of Sucrose Transporters and Tie-dyed Loci in Phloem Loading
journal, January 2009


Phloem Loading Strategies in Three Plant Species That Transport Sugar Alcohols
journal, January 2009

  • Reidel, Edwin J.; Rennie, Emilie A.; Amiard, Véronique
  • Plant Physiology, Vol. 149, Issue 3
  • DOI: 10.1104/pp.108.134791

Increasing Sucrose Uptake Capacity of Wheat Grains Stimulates Storage Protein Synthesis
journal, December 2009

  • Weichert, Nicola; Saalbach, Isolde; Weichert, Heiko
  • Plant Physiology, Vol. 152, Issue 2
  • DOI: 10.1104/pp.109.150854

Carbohydrate Export from the Leaf: A Highly Regulated Process and Target to Enhance Photosynthesis and Productivity: Figure 1.
journal, October 2010

  • Ainsworth, Elizabeth A.; Bush, Daniel R.
  • Plant Physiology, Vol. 155, Issue 1
  • DOI: 10.1104/pp.110.167684

Genetic and Genomic Evidence That Sucrose Is a Global Regulator of Plant Responses to Phosphate Starvation in Arabidopsis    
journal, February 2011

  • Lei, Mingguang; Liu, Yidan; Zhang, Baocai
  • Plant Physiology, Vol. 156, Issue 3
  • DOI: 10.1104/pp.110.171736

Siliques Are Red1 from Arabidopsis Acts as a Bidirectional Amino Acid Transporter That Is Crucial for the Amino Acid Homeostasis of Siliques
journal, February 2012

  • Ladwig, Friederike; Stahl, Mark; Ludewig, Uwe
  • Plant Physiology, Vol. 158, Issue 4
  • DOI: 10.1104/pp.111.192583

Diurnal Changes in Maize Leaf Photosynthesis: I. Carbon Exchange Rate, Assimilate Export Rate, and Enzyme Activities
journal, February 1987

  • Kalt-Torres, Willy; Kerr, Phillip S.; Usuda, Hideaki
  • Plant Physiology, Vol. 83, Issue 2
  • DOI: 10.1104/pp.83.2.283

Rapid Metabolism of Glucose Detected with FRET Glucose Nanosensors in Epidermal Cells and Intact Roots of Arabidopsis RNA-Silencing Mutants
journal, August 2006

  • Deuschle, Karen; Chaudhuri, Bhavna; Okumoto, Sakiko
  • The Plant Cell, Vol. 18, Issue 9
  • DOI: 10.1105/tpc.106.044073

S-Methylmethionine Plays a Major Role in Phloem Sulfur Transport and Is Synthesized by a Novel Type of Methyltransferase
journal, August 1999

  • Bourgis, Fabienne; Roje, Sanja; Nuccio, Michael L.
  • The Plant Cell, Vol. 11, Issue 8
  • DOI: 10.1105/tpc.11.8.1485

Identification of a Mannitol Transporter, AgMaT1, in Celery Phloem
journal, March 2001

  • Noiraud, Nathalie; Maurousset, Laurence; Lemoine, Rémi
  • The Plant Cell, Vol. 13, Issue 3
  • DOI: 10.1105/tpc.13.3.695

Over-expression ofSTP13, a hexose transporter, improves plant growth and nitrogen use inArabidopsis thalianaseedlings
journal, March 2009


Protonophore- and pH-insensitive glucose and sucrose accumulation detected by FRET nanosensors in Arabidopsis root tips
journal, December 2008


The Arabidopsis sugar transporter (AtSTP) family: an update
journal, August 2010


A Transgenic Study on Affecting Potato Tuber Yield by Expressing the Rice Sucrose Transporter Genes OsSUT5Z and OsSUT2MF
journal, July 2011


Cell-wall invertases, key enzymes in the modulation of plant metabolism during defence responses: Cell-wall invertase in the defence response
journal, May 2014

  • Proels, Reinhard Korbinian; Hückelhoven, Ralph
  • Molecular Plant Pathology, Vol. 15, Issue 8
  • DOI: 10.1111/mpp.12139

SWEET sugar transporters for phloem transport and pathogen nutrition
journal, August 2013


Improvement of pea biomass and seed productivity by simultaneous increase of phloem and embryo loading with amino acids
journal, December 2014

  • Zhang, Lizhi; Garneau, Matthew G.; Majumdar, Rajtilak
  • The Plant Journal, Vol. 81, Issue 1
  • DOI: 10.1111/tpj.12716

Sucrose Efflux Mediated by SWEET Proteins as a Key Step for Phloem Transport
journal, December 2011


Crop Productivity and Photoassimilate Partitioning
journal, August 1984


A Bountiful Harvest: Genomic Insights into Crop Domestication Phenotypes
journal, April 2013


Phloem Transport: Cellular Pathways and Molecular Trafficking
journal, June 2009


PHLOEM UNLOADING: Sieve Element Unloading and Post-Sieve Element Transport
journal, June 1997


Proton-Coupled Sugar and Amino Acid Transporters in Plants
journal, June 1993


Effective carbon partitioning driven by exotic phloem-specific regulatory elements fused to the Arabidopsis thaliana AtSUC2 sucrose-proton symporter gene
journal, January 2009

  • Srivastava, Avinash C.; Ganesan, Savita; Ismail, Ihab O.
  • BMC Plant Biology, Vol. 9, Issue 1
  • DOI: 10.1186/1471-2229-9-7

Visualization of Glutamine Transporter Activities in Living Cells Using Genetically Encoded Glutamine Sensors
journal, June 2012


The evolution of minor vein phloem and phloem loading
journal, August 2001

  • Turgeon, Robert; Medville, Richard; Nixon, Kevin C.
  • American Journal of Botany, Vol. 88, Issue 8
  • DOI: 10.2307/3558441

Evolution of plant sucrose uptake transporters
journal, January 2012


Works referencing / citing this record:

Maize Carbohydrate partitioning defective1 impacts carbohydrate distribution, callose accumulation, and phloem function
journal, May 2018

  • Julius, Benjamin T.; Slewinski, Thomas L.; Baker, R. Frank
  • Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol. 69, Issue 16
  • DOI: 10.1093/jxb/ery203

Sucrose transporter2 contributes to maize growth, development, and crop yield: ZmSUT2 contributes to plant growth and yield
journal, April 2017

  • Leach, Kristen A.; Tran, Thu M.; Slewinski, Thomas L.
  • Journal of Integrative Plant Biology, Vol. 59, Issue 6
  • DOI: 10.1111/jipb.12527

Source and sink mechanisms of nitrogen transport and use
journal, November 2017

  • Tegeder, Mechthild; Masclaux-Daubresse, Céline
  • New Phytologist, Vol. 217, Issue 1
  • DOI: 10.1111/nph.14876

Blocking amino acid transporter OsAAP3 improves grain yield by promoting outgrowth buds and increasing tiller number in rice
journal, March 2018

  • Lu, Kai; Wu, Bowen; Wang, Jie
  • Plant Biotechnology Journal, Vol. 16, Issue 10
  • DOI: 10.1111/pbi.12907

Sucrose accumulation in sweet sorghum stems occurs by apoplasmic phloem unloading and does not involve differential Sucrose transporter expression
journal, July 2015


An update on phloem transport: a simple bulk flow under complex regulation
journal, January 2017


New Insights into Phloem Unloading and Expression of Sucrose Transporters in Vegetative Sinks of the Parasitic Plant Phelipanche ramosa L. (Pomel)
journal, January 2017

  • Péron, Thomas; Candat, Adrien; Montiel, Grégory
  • Frontiers in Plant Science, Vol. 7
  • DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2016.02048

13C-Metabolic Flux Analysis in Developing Flax (Linum usitatissinum L.) Embryos to Understand Storage Lipid Biosynthesis
journal, December 2019

  • Acket, Sébastien; Degournay, Anthony; Rossez, Yannick
  • Metabolites, Vol. 10, Issue 1
  • DOI: 10.3390/metabo10010014

Maize Carbohydrate partitioning defective1 impacts carbohydrate distribution, callose accumulation, and phloem function
journal, May 2018

  • Julius, Benjamin T.; Slewinski, Thomas L.; Baker, R. Frank
  • Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol. 69, Issue 16
  • DOI: 10.1093/jxb/ery203

An update on phloem transport: a simple bulk flow under complex regulation
journal, January 2017


Marginal Lands to Grow Novel Bio-Based Crops: A Plant Breeding Perspective
journal, March 2020


Cytokinins and Expression of SWEET, SUT, CWINV and AAP Genes Increase as Pea Seeds Germinate
journal, December 2016

  • Jameson, Paula; Dhandapani, Pragatheswari; Novak, Ondrej
  • International Journal of Molecular Sciences, Vol. 17, Issue 12
  • DOI: 10.3390/ijms17122013

Differential Gene Expression in the Meristem and during Early Fruit Growth of Pisum sativum L. Identifies Potential Targets for Breeding
journal, February 2017

  • Smitha Ninan, Annu; Shah, Anish; Song, Jiancheng
  • International Journal of Molecular Sciences, Vol. 18, Issue 2
  • DOI: 10.3390/ijms18020428