Weighted Gene Co-expression Network Analysis of the Dioscin Rich Medicinal Plant Dioscorea nipponica.

ABSTRACT: Dioscorea contains critically important species which can be used as staple foods or sources of bioactive substances, including Dioscorea nipponica, which has been used to develop highly successful drugs to treat cardiovascular disease. Its major active ingredients are thought to be sterol compounds such as diosgenin, which has been called "medicinal gold" because of its valuable properties. However, reliance on naturally growing plants as a production system limits the potential use of D. nipponica, raising interest in engineering metabolic pathways to enhance the production of secondary metabolites. However, the biosynthetic pathway of diosgenin is still poorly understood, and D. nipponica is poorly characterized at a molecular level, hindering in-depth investigation

SUBMITTER: Sun W 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5461258 | biostudies-literature | 2017

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature