Localization of the glucosinolate biosynthetic enzymes reveals distinct spatial patterns for the biosynthesis of indole and aliphatic glucosinolates

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Glucosinolates constitute the primary defense metabolites in Arabidopsis thaliana (Arabidopsis). Indole and aliphatic glucosinolates, biosynthesized from tryptophan and methionine, respectively, are known to serve distinct biological functions. Although all genes in the biosynthetic pathways are identified, and it is known where glucosinolates are stored, it has remained elusive where glucosinolates are produced at the cellular and tissue level. To understand how the spatial organization of the different glucosinolate biosynthetic pathways contributes to their distinct biological functions, we investigated the localization of enzymes of the pathways under constitutive conditions and, for indole glucosinolates, also under induced conditions, by analyzing the spatial distribution of several fluorophore-tagged enzymes at the whole plant and the cellular level. We show that key steps in the biosynthesis of the different types of glucosinolates are localized in distinct cells in separate as well as overlapping vascular tissues. The presence of glucosinolate biosynthetic enzymes in parenchyma cells of the vasculature may assign new defense-related functions to these cell types. The knowledge gained in this study is an important prerequisite for understanding the orchestration of chemical defenses from site of synthesis to site of storage and potential (re)mobilization upon attack.

Original languageEnglish
JournalPhysiologia Plantarum
Volume163
Issue number2
Pages (from-to)138-154
Number of pages17
ISSN0031-9317
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2018

ID: 195463705