Cloning and characterization of geranylgeranyl diphosphate synthetase from Pinus massoniana and its correlation with resin productivity

Abstract

Geranylgeranyl pyrophosphate synthetase (GGPPS) has gained increasing attention as a key enzyme in terpene analysis. We designed specific primers based on plant GGPPS homologs and used reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) to obtain and identify PinGGPPS, a GGPPS gene sequence from Pinus massoniana, using bioinformatics tools. Quantitative PCR analysis of PinGGPPS expression levels in roots, pine needles, immature stems, and semilignified stems from 6-month-old P. massoniana showed that expression levels of PinGGPPS were highest in pine needles, followed by immature stems and semilignified stems, and lowest in roots. When we examined the correlation between PinGGPPS gene expression levels and resin productivity in 20 adult plants for 28 successive days, PinGGPPS expression levels presented a substantially linear distribution when plotted against their corresponding resin yields. In summary, we characterized the gene PinGGPPS for the first time in P. massoniana, and established a correlation between PinGGPPS gene expression levels and resin productivity, suggesting the importance of theory and production practice for P. massoniana.