Functional characterization of a starch synthesis-related gene AmAGP in Amorphophallus muelleri

Abstract

ABSTRACT Amorphophallus has attracted tremendous interest because of its high contents of glucomannan and starch. Very few genes regulating glucomannan and starch were reported in Amorphophallus. In this study, an ADP-glucose pyrophosphorylase (AGP) gene that plays a significant role in plant starch synthesis was cloned from Amorphophallus muelleri. It was shown that it encoded a predicted protein containing a conserved plant ADP-Glucose-PP repeat domain and seven potential ligand-binding sites. The real-time quantitative PCR showed that AmAGP was most abundant in tubers, and it was positively correlated with starch content. Additionally, its influencers about temperature and exogenous plant hormone were also discussed, showing that AmAGP expressed highly in tubers under treatments using 25°C and IAA. Furthermore, starch content was closely related to AmAGP expression level, suggesting that AmAGP was involved in the regulation of starch synthesis in A. muelleri. Therefore, identifying the sequence of AmAGP and its expression pattern during tuber enlarging and the changes of its transcript levels in response to temperature and plant hormones would contribute to a better understanding of starch synthesis, and also providing a reference information for future preferable breeding for obtaining more starch or more glucomannan in Amorphophallus.