Comparative Metabolomics Analysis of 3 New Potato Varieties against the Atlantic Cultivar; Bioinformatics based Experimental Study

Abstract

Background: Varietal differences in metabolite composition play a crucial role in determining agronomic traits, nutritional quality and stress resilience in Solanum tuberosum. Methods: Three potatoes varieties; Longshu 7, Longshu 10 and Longshu 14 were selected and bred by the at the Potato Research Institute of Gansu Academy of Agricultural Sciences between December 2021 to December 2023. Thereafter, comparative metabolomics analysis of three new potato varieties (LS7, LS10 and LS14) was undertaken against the well-established Atlantic cultivar. We employed a bioinformatics-based experimental approach to analyze the metabolomic data obtained from the three new potato varieties (LS7, LS10 and LS14) and the Atlantic cultivar. Metabolite profiling was performed using high-throughput liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) techniques. Differential metabolite analysis and pathway enrichment analysis were conducted to identify significant metabolic differences and enriched pathways among the varieties. Result: Results revealed substantial differences in metabolite composition and pathway enrichment between the new potato varieties and the Atlantic cultivar. Metabolites involved in diverse metabolic pathways, including glucoside and hydroxyproline in LS7, kaempferol and ascorbic acid in LS10 and phenyl-butyryl-glutamine and ascorbic acid in LS14, exhibited significant upregulation or downregulation compared to the Atlantic cultivar. Pathway enrichment analysis highlighted the prominence of ABC transporters across all comparisons, suggesting their universal role in mediating cellular processes and stress responses in potato varieties. In conclusion, these findings contribute to our understanding of potato metabolism and pave the way for the development of novel breeding approaches to meet the evolving demands of global agriculture and food security.