Methyl phenlactonoates are efficient strigolactone analogs with simple structure.

Muhammad Jamil, Boubacar Amadou Kountche, Imran Haider, Xiujie Guo, Valentine Otang Ntui, Kunpeng Jia, Shawkat Ali, Umar S Hameed, Hidemitsu Nakamura, Ying Lyu, Kai Jiang, Kei Hirabayashi, Masaru Tanokura, Stefan T. Arold, Tadao Asami, Salim Al-Babili

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

50 Scopus citations

Abstract

Strigolactones (SLs) are a new class of phytohormones that also act as germination stimulants for root parasitic plants, such as Striga spp., and as branching factors for symbiotic arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi. Sources for natural SLs are very limited. Hence, efficient and simple SL analogs are needed for elucidating SL-related biological processes as well as for agricultural applications. Based on the structure of the non-canonical SL methyl carlactonoate, we developed a new, easy to synthesize series of analogs, termed methyl phenlactonoates (MPs), evaluated their efficacy in exerting different SL functions, and determined their affinity for SL receptors from rice and Striga hermonthica. Most of the MPs showed considerable activity in regulating plant architecture, triggering leaf senescence, and inducing parasitic seed germination. Moreover, some MPs outperformed GR24, a widely used SL analog with a complex structure, in exerting particular SL functions, such as modulating Arabidopsis roots architecture and inhibiting rice tillering. Thus, MPs will help in elucidating the functions of SLs and are promising candidates for agricultural applications. Moreover, MPs demonstrate that slight structural modifications clearly impact the efficiency in exerting particular SL functions, indicating that structural diversity of natural SLs may mirror a functional specificity.
Original languageEnglish (US)
JournalJournal of experimental botany
DOIs
StatePublished - 2017

Bibliographical note

KAUST Repository Item: Exported on 2020-10-01
Acknowledgements: This work was funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation grant OPP1136424 and King Abdullah University of Science and Technology. We highly appreciate the valuable comments of Dr Jonne Rodenburg and thank Dr Binne Zwanenburg for providing GR24, Dr Junko Kyozuka for providing seeds of the rice d mutants, and Dr Abdel Gabar Babiker for providing S. hermonthica seeds.

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