Coordinated regulation of the entry and exit steps of aromatic amino acid biosynthesis supports the dual lignin pathway in grasses

Jorge El-Azaz, Bethany Moore, Yuri Takeda-Kimura, Ryo Yokoyama, Micha Wijesingha Ahchige, Xuan Chen, Matthew Schneider and Hiroshi A. Maeda ()
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Jorge El-Azaz: University of Wisconsin-Madison
Bethany Moore: University of Wisconsin-Madison
Yuri Takeda-Kimura: University of Wisconsin-Madison
Ryo Yokoyama: University of Wisconsin-Madison
Micha Wijesingha Ahchige: University of Wisconsin-Madison
Xuan Chen: University of Wisconsin-Madison
Matthew Schneider: University of Wisconsin-Madison
Hiroshi A. Maeda: University of Wisconsin-Madison

Nature Communications, 2023, vol. 14, issue 1, 1-14

Abstract: Abstract Vascular plants direct large amounts of carbon to produce the aromatic amino acid phenylalanine to support the production of lignin and other phenylpropanoids. Uniquely, grasses, which include many major crops, can synthesize lignin and phenylpropanoids from both phenylalanine and tyrosine. However, how grasses regulate aromatic amino acid biosynthesis to feed this dual lignin pathway is unknown. Here we show, by stable-isotope labeling, that grasses produce tyrosine >10-times faster than Arabidopsis without compromising phenylalanine biosynthesis. Detailed in vitro enzyme characterization and combinatorial in planta expression uncovered that coordinated expression of specific enzyme isoforms at the entry and exit steps of the aromatic amino acid pathway enables grasses to maintain high production of both tyrosine and phenylalanine, the precursors of the dual lignin pathway. These findings highlight the complex regulation of plant aromatic amino acid biosynthesis and provide novel genetic tools to engineer the interface of primary and specialized metabolism in plants.

Date: 2023
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-42587-7

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