A Bitter-Sweet Story: Unraveling the Genes Involved in Quinolizidine Alkaloid Synthesis in Lupinus albus

• Published in: Frontiers in plant science Vol. 12; p. 795091
• Main Authors: Osorio, Claudia E, Till, Bradley J
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland Frontiers Media S.A 26-01-2022
• Subjects: alkaloids; Lupinus albus; pauper; Plant Science; quinolizidine alkaloids; white lupin; Lupinus albus; pauper; white lupin; alkaloids; quinolizidine alkaloids
• ISSN: 1664-462X; 1664-462X
• DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2021.795091

Alkaloids are part of a structurally diverse group of over 21,000 cyclic nitrogen-containing secondary metabolites that are found in over 20% of plant species.
are naturally containing quinolizidine alkaloid (QA) legumes, with wild accessions containing up to 11% of QA in seeds. Notwithstanding their clear advantages as a natural protecting system, lupin-breeding programs have selected against QA content without proper understanding of quinolizidine alkaloid biosynthetic pathway. This review summarizes the current status in this field, with focus on the utilization of natural mutations such as the one contained in
locus, and more recently the development of molecular markers, which along with the advent of sequencing technology, have facilitated the identification of candidate genes located in the
region. New insights for future research are provided, including the utilization of differentially expressed genes located on the
, as candidates for genome editing. Identification of the main genes involved in the biosynthesis of QA will enable precision breeding of low-alkaloid, high nutrition white lupin. This is important as plant based high quality protein for food and feed is an essential for sustainable agricultural productivity.