Overexpression of SrUGT76G1 in Stevia alters major steviol glycosides composition towards improved quality.

ABSTRACT: Steviol glycosides (SGs) are extracted from Stevia leaves for use as a natural sweetener. Among SGs, stevioside is most abundant in leaf extracts followed by rebaudioside A (Reb A). However, Reb A is of particular interest because of its sweeter and more pleasant taste compared to stevioside. Therefore, the development of new Stevia varieties with a higher Reb A to stevioside ratio would be desirable for the production of higher quality natural sweeteners. Here, we generated transgenic Stevia plants overexpressing Stevia UDP-glycosyltransferase 76G1 (SrUGT76G1) that is known to convert stevioside to Reb A through 1,3-β-d-glucosylation in vitro. Interestingly, by overexpressing SrUGT76G1, the Reb A to stevioside ratio was drastically increased from 0.30 in wild-type (WT) plants up to 1.55 i

SUBMITTER: Kim MJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6523589 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature