Engineering an Ancestral Glycosyltransferase for Biosynthesis of 2-Phenylethyl-β-d-Glucopyranoside and Salidroside.

Phenylethanoid glycosides (PhGs) are naturally occurring glycosides derived from plants with various biological activities. Glycosyltransferases catalyze the production of PhGs from phenylethanols via a transglycosylation reaction. The low activity and stability of glycosyltransferase limit its industrial application.

The NAC transcription factor ClNAC68 positively regulates sugar content and seed development in watermelon by repressing ClINV and ClGH3.6.

NAC (NAM, ATAF1/2, and CUC2) transcription factors play important roles in fruit ripening and quality. The watermelon genome encodes 80 NAC genes, and 21 of these NAC genes are highly expressed in both the flesh and vascular tissues. Among these genes, ClNAC68 expression was significantly higher in flesh than in rind.