Amino Acid Metabolism and Plant Genetic Engineering
Summary
Amino acid metabolism in plants encompasses the biosynthesis, interconversion and catabolism of the twenty proteinogenic amino acids, which serve as building blocks for proteins, precursors for secondary metabolites and regulators of growth and development. Central pathways such as the aspartate-family route yield essential sulphur-containing amino acids, while branched-chain and aromatic amino acids arise from distinct metabolic networks. The regulation of these routes adjusts to environmental cues, developmental programmes and nutritional status, balancing protein synthesis with the production of osmoprotectants and defence compounds. Plant genetic engineering exploits this metabolic plasticity by introducing or modifying genes encoding key enzymes, transporters or regulatory factors. By overexpressing biosynthetic enzymes, silencing catabolic activities or re-routing carbon and nitrogen flux, researchers have enhanced essential amino acid content, improved stress tolerance and altered lignin composition for biofuel applications. Such interventions hold global significance for human nutrition, sustainable agriculture and industrial biotechnology, enabling crops with superior protein quality, resilience under abiotic stress and tailored biomass characteristics without compromising yield.
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Amino Acid Metabolism and Plant Genetic Engineering publication trend
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Technical terms
Cystathionine γ-synthase (CGS): Enzyme catalysing the first committed step in methionine biosynthesis via the aspartate-family pathway.
Methionine γ-lyase (MGL): Catabolic enzyme that degrades methionine to 2-oxobutanoate and methanethiol, feeding into isoleucine biosynthesis and stress protection.
Aspartate-family pathway: Metabolic route converting aspartate into lysine, threonine, methionine and isoleucine through a shared set of intermediates.
Transgenic organism: Plant or other organism whose genome has been deliberately modified to express foreign or altered native genes.
Osmoprotectant: Small molecule, such as a specific amino acid or sugar, that accumulates to protect cells against osmotic stress.
References
- Overexpressing GmCGS2 Improves Total Amino Acid and Protein Content in Soybean Seed. International Journal of Molecular Sciences (2023).
- Elucidating the importance of the catabolic enzyme, methionine-gamma-lyase, in stresses during Arabidopsis seed development and germination. Frontiers in Plant Science (2023).
- Fortifying Horticultural Crops with Essential Amino Acids: A Review. International Journal of Molecular Sciences (2017).
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