Biotech Updates

Chinese Researchers Identify Gene for Engineering Anthocyanins in Plants

March 30, 2022

MtGSTF7 specifically participates in anthocyanin accumulation in Medicago truncatula. (Photo Source: WANG Ruoruo)

Researchers from the Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden (XTBG) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) have discovered a key gene regulating the biosynthesis of anthocyanins and proanthocyanidins.

In a study published in the Journal of Experimental Botany, the researchers showed that MtGSTF7, a TT19-like glutathione S-transferase (GST) gene, was activated by the anthocyanin regulator LAP1 in the accumulation of anthocyanins, but not proanthocyanins, in the model legume plant Medicago truncatula.

The researchers found that MtGSTF7 plays a critical role in anthocyanin accumulation in M. truncatula. In addition, MtGSTF7 could help rescue anthocyanin-deficient mutants. They also found that LAP1 could bind to the MtGSTF7 promoter to activate its expression. Ectopic expression of MtGSTF7 in tt19 mutants could rescue their anthocyanin deficiency, but not their proanthocyanin defect.

For more details, read the article in CAS Newsroom.


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