Abstract
Isopentenyl diphosphate isomerase (IPI), a key enzyme of terpenoid biosynthesis pathway, catalyzes the reversible conversion between isopentenyl diphosphate (IPP) and its allylic isomer dimethylallyl diphosphate (DMAPP), which are essential precursors for terpenoid biosynthesis. In this study, we isolated and characterized the IPI gene from Lycium chinense (LcIPI). The full-length cDNA sequence was 1104 bp encoding 293 amino acid residues. Additionally, several specific conserved motifs of IPI were also identified by amino acid sequence analysis in this protein. Phylogenetic tree showed that LcIPI had a close relationship with other solanaceae plants. Expression of recombinant protein in Escherichia coli produced a clear target band of about 35 kDa. Enzymatic activity was determined by heterologous complementation analysis, and β-carotene content of LcIPI transformants was about two times more compared with control. Furthermore, quantitative real-time PCR assay demonstrated that LcIPI was expressed in all tissues tested with the highest level in flowers. The results obtained here clearly suggest that the LcIPI gene is a promising candidate for carotenoid production in heterologous hosts.
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