Integrative Analysis of Elicitor-Induced Camptothecin Biosynthesis in Camptotheca acuminata Plantlets Through a...

Treatments with abiotic elicitors can efficiently induce the accumulation of specialized metabolites in plants. We used a combined omics approach to analyze the elicitation effects of MeJa, AgNO₃, and PEG on camptothecin (CPT) biosynthesis in Camptotheca acuminata plantlets. Untargeted analyses revealed that treatments with MeJa, AgNO₃, and PEG significantly inhibited the photosynthetic pathway and promoted carbon metabolism and secondary metabolic pathways. The CPT levels increased by 78.6, 73.3, and 50.0% in the MeJa, AgNO₃, and PEG treatment groups, respectively. Using C. acuminata plantlets after elicitation treatment, we mined and characterized 15 new alkaloids, 25 known CPT analogs and precursors, 9 iridoid biosynthetic precursors, and 15 tryptamine biosynthetic precursors based on their MS/MS fragmentation spectra. Using 32 characterized genes involved in CPT biosynthesis as bait, we mined 12 prioritized CYP450 genes from the 416 CYP450 candidates that had been identified based on co-expression analysis, conserved domain analysis, and their elicitation-associated upregulation patterns. This study provides a comprehensive perspective on CPT biosynthesis in C. acuminata plantlets after abiotic elicitation. The findings enable us to elucidate the previously unexplored CYP450-mediated oxidation steps for CPT biosynthesis.