Identification and Characterization of Sterol Acyltransferases Responsible for Steryl Ester Biosynthesis in Tomato.

Steryl esters (SEs) serve as a storage pool of sterols that helps to maintain proper levels of free sterols (FSs) in cell membranes throughout plant growth and development, and participates in the recycling of FSs and fatty acids released from cell membranes in aging tissues. SEs are synthesized by sterol acyltransferases, a family of enzymes that catalyze the transfer of fatty acil groups to the hydroxyl group at C-3 position of the sterol backbone. Sterol acyltransferases are categorized into acyl-CoA:sterol acyltransferases (ASAT) and phospholipid:sterol acyltransferases (PSAT) depending on whether the fatty acyl donor substrate is a long-chain acyl-CoA or a phospolipid.

Tomato UDP-Glucose Sterol Glycosyltransferases: A Family of Developmental and Stress Regulated Genes that Encode Cytosolic and Membrane-Associated Forms of the Enzyme.

Sterol glycosyltransferases (SGTs) catalyze the glycosylation of the free hydroxyl group at C-3 position of sterols to produce sterol glycosides. Glycosylated sterols and free sterols are primarily located in cell membranes where in combination with other membrane-bound lipids play a key role in modulating their properties and functioning. In contrast to most plant species, those of the genus contain very high levels of glycosylated sterols, which in the case of tomato may account for more than 85% of the total sterol content.

Strategies and Methodologies for the Co-expression of Multiple Proteins in Plants.

The first transgenes were introduced in a plant genome more than 30 years ago. Since then, the capabilities of the plant scientific community to engineer the genome of plants have progressed at an unparalleled speed. Plant genetic engineering has become a central technology that has dramatically incremented our basic knowledge of plant biology and has enabled the translation of this knowledge into a number of increasingly complex and sophisticated biotechnological applications, which in most cases rely on the simultaneous co-expression of multiple recombinant proteins from different origins.

Arabidopsis Squalene Epoxidase 3 (SQE3) Complements SQE1 and Is Important for Embryo Development and Bulk Squalene Epoxidase Activity.

The existence of multigenic families in the mevalonate pathway suggests divergent functional roles for pathway components involved in the biosynthesis of plant sterols. Squalene epoxidases (SQEs) are key components of this pathway, and Squalene Epoxidase 1 (SQE1) has been identified as a fundamental enzyme in this biosynthetic step. In the present work, we extended the characterization of the remaining SQE family members, phylogenetically resolving between true SQEs and a subfamily of SQE-like proteins that is exclusive to Brassicaceae.