Abstract
Enzymatic O-methylation of plant secondary metabolites is an important mechanism for the inactivation of reactive hydroxyl groups and for the modification of their solubility. A cDNA clone (pFOMT3′) encoding the gene for the 3′/5′-O-methylation of partially methylated flavonols was isolated from Chrysosplenium americanum (Saxifragaceae). We used a PCR fragment obtained with degenerate oligonucleotides designed from conserved regions of various O-methyltransferases (OMTs). The pFOMT3′ cDNA sequence shows about 67–85% similarity to other plant OMT sequences. The recombinant protein expresses strict specificity for positions 3′/5′ (meta) of partially methylated flavonols, but does not accept quercetin or caffeic acid for further methylation. Southern blot analysis of the genomic DNA probed with an OMT sequence suggests the presence of a number of related genes in this species, consistent with the multiple enzymatic methylations involved in the biosynthesis of polymethylated flavonols in this plant.
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Gauthier, A., Gulick, P.J. & Ibrahim, R.K. cDNA cloning and characterization of a 3′/5′-O-methyltransferase for partially methylated flavonols from Chrysosplenium americanum . Plant Mol Biol 32, 1163–1169 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00041401
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00041401