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Title: Exploiting the Substrate Promiscuity of Hydroxycinnamoyl-CoA:Shikimate Hydroxycinnamoyl Transferase to Reduce Lignin

Journal Article · · Plant and Cell Physiology
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1093/pcp/pcw016· OSTI ID:1379120
 [1];  [2];  [3];  [1];  [4];  [1];  [1];  [2];  [3];  [1]
  1. Joint BioEnergy Inst. (JBEI), Emeryville, CA (United States); Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). Biological Systems and Engineering Division
  2. Joint BioEnergy Inst. (JBEI), Emeryville, CA (United States); Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). Molecular Biophysics and Integrated Bioimaging Division
  3. Joint BioEnergy Inst. (JBEI), Emeryville, CA (United States); Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). Biological Systems and Engineering Division; Univ. of California, Berkeley, CA (United States). Dept. of Bioengineering & Dept. of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering
  4. Joint BioEnergy Inst. (JBEI), Emeryville, CA (United States); Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). Biological Systems and Engineering Division; San Francisco State Univ., CA (United States)

Lignin poses a major challenge in the processing of plant biomass for agro-industrial applications. For bioengineering purposes, there is a pressing interest in identifying and characterizing the enzymes responsible for the biosynthesis of lignin. Hydroxycinnamoyl-CoA:shikimate hydroxycinnamoyl transferase (HCT; EC 2.3.1.133) is a key metabolic entry point for the synthesis of the most important lignin monomers: coniferyl and sinapyl alcohols. In this study, we investigated the substrate promiscuity of HCT from a bryophyte (Physcomitrella) and from five representatives of vascular plants (Arabidopsis, poplar, switchgrass, pine and Selaginella) using a yeast expression system. We demonstrate for these HCTs a conserved capacity to acylate with p-coumaroyl-CoA several phenolic compounds in addition to the canonical acceptor shikimate normally used during lignin biosynthesis. Using either recombinant HCT from switchgrass (PvHCT2a) or an Arabidopsis stem protein extract, we show evidence of the inhibitory effect of these phenolics on the synthesis of p-coumaroyl shikimate in vitro, which presumably occurs via a mechanism of competitive inhibition. A structural study of PvHCT2a confirmed the binding of a non-canonical acceptor in a similar manner to shikimate in the active site of the enzyme. Finally, we exploited in Arabidopsis the substrate flexibility of HCT to reduce lignin content and improve biomass saccharification by engineering transgenic lines that overproduce one of the HCT non-canonical acceptors. Our results demonstrate conservation of HCT substrate promiscuity and provide support for a new strategy for lignin reduction in the effort to improve the quality of plant biomass for forage and cellulosic biofuels.

Research Organization:
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), Biological and Environmental Research (BER); National Institutes of Health (NIH); USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES)
Grant/Contract Number:
AC02-05CH11231
OSTI ID:
1379120
Journal Information:
Plant and Cell Physiology, Vol. 57, Issue 3; ISSN 0032-0781
Publisher:
Japanese Society of Plant PhysiologistsCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 56 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

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Evolution of coumaroyl conjugate 3‐hydroxylases in land plants: lignin biosynthesis and defense journal June 2019
Comparison of leaf transcriptome in response to Rhizoctonia solani infection between resistant and susceptible rice cultivars journal March 2020
Exploiting members of the BAHD acyltransferase family to synthesize multiple hydroxycinnamate and benzoate conjugates in yeast journal November 2016
Gene stacking of multiple traits for high yield of fermentable sugars in plant biomass journal January 2018
A screening method to identify efficient sgRNAs in Arabidopsis, used in conjunction with cell-specific lignin reduction journal May 2019
Genome-Wide Identification of BAHD Acyltransferases and In vivo Characterization of HQT-like Enzymes Involved in Caffeoylquinic Acid Synthesis in Globe Artichoke journal September 2016
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