Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 14, 2025
A Converging Strategy for the Generation of a Virtually Sequenced cDNA Library from Unreferenced Pacific Oysters
Published on: June 13, 2019
Molecular Cloning and Functional Characterization of Oxidosqualene Cyclases from Panax vietnamensis
Yibo Wang1,2, Baojie Wang2, Furong Xu2
1Key Laboratory of Yunnan Provincial Department of Education on Substance Benchmark Research of Ethnic Medicines, Yunnan University of Chinese Medicine, Kunming, 650500, China.
Abstract:
Panax vietnamensis is a valuable medicinal resource with promising preclinical applications. Ginsenosides, which are triterpenoids, are the primary active components in P. vietnamensis. Oxidosqualene cyclases (OSCs) catalyze the formation of the basic skeleton of triterpenes from 2,3-oxidosqualene, which is a crucial step in the biosynthesis of triterpenoids. The OSCs involved in triterpenoid biosynthesis in P. vietnamensis have not yet been characterized. Four OSC genes (PvOSC1-4) were cloned from P. vietnamensis and functionally characterized via heterologous expression in yeast. Transgenic yeast expressing PvOSC1, PvOSC3, and PvOSC4 produced the corresponding products β-amyrin, cycloartenol, and dammarenediol-II, respectively. PvOSC1, PvOSC3, and PvOSC4 are monofunctional OSCs. In this study, we characterized three PvOSC genes, providing a better understanding of the biosynthesis of triterpenoids in P. vietnamensis and the multiple choices of plant OSCs for metabolic engineering in yeast and other hosts.
