The role of phloem sieve elements and laticifers in the biosynthesis and accumulation of alkaloids in opium poppy.

The benzylisoquinoline alkaloids of opium poppy, including the narcotic analgesics morphine and codeine, accumulate in the multinucleate cytoplasm of specialized laticifers that accompany vascular tissues throughout the plant. In mature opium poppy plants, immunofluorescence labeling using specific antibodies showed that four alkaloid biosynthetic enzymes, (S)-norcoclaurine 6-O-methyltransferase (6OMT), (S)-coclaurine N-methyltransferase (CNMT), (S)-3'-hydroxy-N-methylcoclaurine-4'-O-methyltransferase (4'OMT) and salutaridinol-7-O-acetyltransferase (SAT) were restricted to sieve elements of the phloem adjacent or proximal to laticifers. The identity of sieve elements was confirmed by (i) the specific immunogold labeling of the characteristic cytoplasm of this cell type, (ii) the co-localization of a sieve element-specific H(+)-ATPase with all biosynthetic enzymes and (iii) the strict association of sieve plates with immunofluorescent cells. The localization of laticifers was demonstrated antibodies specific to major latex protein (MLP), which is characteristic of this cell type. In situ hybridization using antisense RNA probes for 6OMT, CNMT, 4'OMT and SAT showed that the corresponding gene transcripts were found in the companion cell paired with each sieve element. Seven benzylisoquinoline alkaloid biosynthetic enzymes, (S)-N-methylcoclaurine 3'-hydroxylase (CYP80B1), berberine bridge enzyme, codeinone reductase, 6OMT, CNMT, 4'OMT and SAT were localized by immunofluorescence labeling to the sieve elements in the root and hypocotyl of opium poppy seedlings. The abundance of these enzymes increased rapidly between 1 and 3 days after seed germination. The localization of seven biosynthetic enzymes to the sieve elements provides strong support for the unique, cell type-specific biosynthesis of benzylisoquinoline alkaloids in the opium poppy.

Cell type-specific localization of transcripts encoding nine consecutive enzymes involved in protoberberine alkaloid biosynthesis.

Molecular clones encoding nine consecutive biosynthetic enzymes that catalyze the conversion of l-dopa to the protoberberine alkaloid (S)-canadine were isolated from meadow rue (Thalictrum flavum ssp glaucum). The predicted proteins showed extensive sequence identity with corresponding enzymes involved in the biosynthesis of related benzylisoquinoline alkaloids in other species, such as opium poppy (Papaver somniferum). RNA gel blot hybridization analysis showed that gene transcripts for each enzyme were most abundant in rhizomes but were also detected at lower levels in roots and other organs. In situ RNA hybridization analysis revealed the cell type-specific expression of protoberberine alkaloid biosynthetic genes in roots and rhizomes. In roots, gene transcripts for all nine enzymes were localized to immature endodermis, pericycle, and, in some cases, adjacent cortical cells. In rhizomes, gene transcripts encoding all nine enzymes were restricted to the protoderm of leaf primordia. The localization of biosynthetic gene transcripts was in contrast with the tissue-specific accumulation of protoberberine alkaloids. In roots, protoberberine alkaloids were restricted to mature endodermal cells upon the initiation of secondary growth and were distributed throughout the pith and cortex in rhizomes. Thus, the cell type-specific localization of protoberberine alkaloid biosynthesis and accumulation are temporally and spatially separated in T. flavum roots and rhizomes, respectively. Despite the close phylogeny between corresponding biosynthetic enzymes, distinct and different cell types are involved in the biosynthesis and accumulation of benzylisoquinoline alkaloids in T. flavum and P. somniferum. Our results suggest that the evolution of alkaloid metabolism involves not only the recruitment of new biosynthetic enzymes, but also the migration of established pathways between cell types.

Molecular cloning and characterization of norcoclaurine synthase, an enzyme catalyzing the first committed step in benzylisoquinoline alkaloid biosynthesis.

(S)-Norcoclaurine synthase (NCS) (EC 4.2.1.78) catalyzes the condensation of 3,4-dihydroxyphenylethylamine (dopamine) and 4-hydroxyphenylacetaldehyde (4-HPAA) as the first committed step in the biosynthesis of benzylisoquinoline alkaloids such as morphine, sanguinarine, and berberine, in plants. A molecular clone encoding NCS was isolated from a meadow rue (Thalictrum flavum ssp. glaucum) cell suspension culture cDNA library. Heterologous expression of the NCS cDNA, truncated to remove a putative signal peptide, produced a recombinant protein with NCS activity. Recombinant NCS showed sigmoidal saturation kinetics for dopamine (Hill coefficient=1.98), hyperbolic saturation kinetics for 4-HPAA (Km of 700 microm), and pH and temperature optima of 7.0 and 40 degrees C, respectively, all similar to the purified, plant-derived enzyme. NCS exhibits 28-38% identity, and putative structural homology, with the Bet v 1 allergen and pathogenesis-related (PR)10 protein families. NCS also displays 35% identity with the enzyme (HYP1) responsible for hypericin biosynthesis in St John's wort (Hypericum perforatum). The novel catalytic functions of NCS and HYP1 define a new class of plant secondary metabolic enzymes within the Bet v 1 and PR10 protein families. Weaker homology was also detected between NCS and proteins identified in the latex of Papaver somniferum (opium poppy), and in Arabidopsis thaliana. A family of three to five NCS genes is abundantly expressed in the rhizome, followed by petioles and roots of T. flavum. NCS transcripts were localized to the immature endodermis and pericycle in roots, and the protoderm of leaf primordia in rhizomes; thus, the sites of NCS gene expression and berberine accumulation are temporally and spatially separated in roots and rhizomes respectively.

In vitro regeneration and genetic transformation of the berberine-producing plant, Thalictrum flavum ssp. glaucum.

Protocols have been developed for the in vitro regeneration and Agrobacterium-mediated genetic transformation of meadow rue, Thalictrum flavum ssp. glaucum. Ten-day-old seedlings were bisected along the embryonic axis and the cotyledons were co-cultured with various Agrobacterium tumefaciens strains for 3 days. The cotyledons were cultured on a shoot induction medium (B5 salts and vitamins, 30 g l-1 sucrose, 2 mg l-1 kinetin, and 3 g l-1 Gelrite) containing 25 mg l-1 hygromycin B as the selection agent and 250 mg l-1 timentin to facilitate the elimination of Agrobacterium. Only the oncogenic A. tumefaciens strains A281 and C58 produced transgenic T. flavum callus tissues. A281 was the most effective strain producing hygromycin-resistant callus on 85% of the explants. Transgenic callus was subcultured on the shoot induction medium every 2 weeks. After 12 weeks, hygromycin-resistant shoots that formed on explants exposed to strain A281 were transferred to a root induction medium (B5 salts and vitamins, 25 mg l-1 hygromycin B, 250 mg l-1 timentin, and 3 g l-1 Gelrite). Detection of the beta-glucuronidase (GUS) gene using a polymerase chain reaction assay, the high levels of GUS mRNA and enzyme activity, and the cytohistochemical localization of GUS activity confirmed the genetic transformation of callus cultures and regenerated plants. The transformation process did not alter the normal content of berberine in transgenic roots or cell cultures; thus, the reported protocol is valuable to study the molecular and metabolic regulation of protoberberine alkaloid biosynthesis.

Purification and characterization of norcoclaurine synthase. The first committed enzyme in benzylisoquinoline alkaloid biosynthesis in plants.

Norcoclaurine synthase (NCS; EC ) catalyzes the condensation of dopamine and 4-hydroxyphenylacetaldehyde (4-HPAA) as the first committed step in benzylisoquinoline alkaloid biosynthesis in plants. NCS was purified 1590-fold to homogeneity from cell suspension cultures of meadow rue (Thalictrum flavum ssp. glaucum). The purification procedure, which resulted in a 4.2% yield, involved hydrophobic interaction, anion exchange, hydroxyapatite, and gel filtration chromatography. Purified NCS displayed native and denatured molecular masses of approximately 28 and 15 kDa, respectively, suggesting that the enzyme is composed of two subunits. Two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis revealed two major and two minor isoforms with pI values between 5.5 and 6.2. NCS activity was maximal at pH 6.5 to 7.0 and temperatures between 42 and 55 degrees C and was not affected by divalent cations. The enzyme showed hyperbolic saturation kinetics for 4-HPAA (K(m) = 335 microm) but sigmoidal saturation kinetics for dopamine (Hill coefficient = 1.8) suggesting cooperativity between the dopamine binding sites on each subunit; thus, NCS might play a regulatory, or rate-limiting, role in controlling the rate of pathway flux in benzylisoquinoline alkaloid biosynthesis. Product inhibition kinetics performed at saturating levels of one substrate and with norlaudanosoline as the inhibitor showed that NCS follows an iso-ordered bi-uni mechanism with 4-HPAA binding before dopamine. NCS activity was highest in soluble protein extracts from roots followed by stems, leaves, and flower buds.