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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Plant Sci.
Sec. Plant Metabolism and Chemodiversity
Volume 15 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fpls.2024.1394587
This article is part of the Research Topic Plant Secondary Metabolite Biosynthesis View all 10 articles

Single-cell transcriptome profiling reveals the spatiotemporal distribution of triterpenoid saponin biosynthesis and transposable element activity in Gynostemma pentaphyllum shoot apexes and leaves

Provisionally accepted
Rucan Li Rucan Li 1Ke Du Ke Du 1Chuyi Zhang Chuyi Zhang 1*Xiaofeng Shen Xiaofeng Shen 1*Lingling Yun Lingling Yun 1*Shu Wang Shu Wang 1*Ziqin Li Ziqin Li 1,2*Zhiying Sun Zhiying Sun 2*Jianhe Wei Jianhe Wei 1*Ying Li Ying Li 1*Baolin Guo Baolin Guo 1*Chao Sun Chao Sun 1*
  • 1 Institute of Medicinal Plant Development, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, Beijing Municipality, China
  • 2 Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, Shandong Province, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Gynostemma pentaphyllum (Thunb.) Makino is an important producer of dammarene-type triterpenoid saponins. These saponins (gypenosides) exhibit diverse pharmacological benefits such as anticancer, antidiabetic, and immunomodulatory effects, and have major potential in the pharmaceutical and health care industries.Here, we employed single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) to profile the transcriptomes of more than 50,000 cells derived from G. pentaphyllum shoot apexes and leaves. Following cell clustering and annotation, we identified five major cell types in shoot apexes and four in leaves. Each cell type displayed substantial transcriptomic heterogeneity both within and between tissues. Examining gene expression patterns across various cell types revealed that gypenoside biosynthesis predominantly occurred in mesophyll cells, with heightened activity observed in shoot apexes compared to leaves. Furthermore, we explored the impact of transposable 2 elements (TEs) on G. pentaphyllum transcriptomic landscapes. Our findings the highlighted the unbalanced expression of certain TE families across different cell types in shoot apexes and leaves, marking the first investigation of TE expression at the single-cell level in plants. Additionally, we observed dynamic expression of genes involved in gypenoside biosynthesis and specific TE families during epidermal and vascular cell development. The involvement of TE expression in regulating cell differentiation and gypenoside biosynthesis warrant further exploration. Overall, this study not only provides new insights into the spatiotemporal organization of gypenoside biosynthesis and TE activity in G. pentaphyllum shoot apexes and leaves but also offers valuable cellular and genetic resources for a deeper understanding of developmental and physiological processes at single-cell resolution in this species.

    Keywords: single-cell, RNA-Seq, Gynostemma pentaphyllum, Triterpenoid saponin, Transposable element

    Received: 01 Mar 2024; Accepted: 24 Apr 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Li, Du, Zhang, Shen, Yun, Wang, Li, Sun, Wei, Li, Guo and Sun. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Chuyi Zhang, Institute of Medicinal Plant Development, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, 100193, Beijing Municipality, China
    Xiaofeng Shen, Institute of Medicinal Plant Development, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, 100193, Beijing Municipality, China
    Lingling Yun, Institute of Medicinal Plant Development, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, 100193, Beijing Municipality, China
    Shu Wang, Institute of Medicinal Plant Development, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, 100193, Beijing Municipality, China
    Ziqin Li, Institute of Medicinal Plant Development, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, 100193, Beijing Municipality, China
    Zhiying Sun, Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, 250355, Shandong Province, China
    Jianhe Wei, Institute of Medicinal Plant Development, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, 100193, Beijing Municipality, China
    Ying Li, Institute of Medicinal Plant Development, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, 100193, Beijing Municipality, China
    Baolin Guo, Institute of Medicinal Plant Development, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, 100193, Beijing Municipality, China
    Chao Sun, Institute of Medicinal Plant Development, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, 100193, Beijing Municipality, China

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.