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Publications
Glycosylceramides (GlyCers) are precursors of ceramides (Cers) that are major components of the outer layer of human skin, the stratum corneum. A Cer deficiency is associated with skin diseases such as psoriasis and atopic dermatitis and can be treated with Cer-containing semisolid formulations. Plants may serve as alternative sources for expensive semisynthetic Cer production. Since the GlyCer contents of plants vary widely, there is a need to develop a rapid, simple, selective, and precise method for GlyCer quantification in plants. In the present study, an effective and validated automated multiple development‒high-performance thin-layer chromatography (AMD‒HPTLC) method has been developed for GlyCer quantification in 9 different plant materials. An 18-step gradient elution program (n-hexane, chloroform, ethyl acetate, methanol) led to a clear separation of bands from complex matrices and allowed densitometric analysis for quantification purposes. Apple pomace and wheat germs yielded 26.8 and 39.5 mg of GlyCer per 100 g plant material, respectively, while the yields of coffee grounds were below the limit of quantification. The GlyCer contents of the seeds of six Fabaceae species, namely, Albizia grandibracteata, Albizia gummifera, Albizia lebbeck, Albizia schimperiana, Acacia etbaica, and Robinia pseudoacacia, ranged from 9.4 to 23.1 mg per 100 g plant material. GlyCers were separated by preparative thin-layer chromatography (TLC) and identified by offline high-performance liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry (HPLC–MS). Intact GlyCers were detected in the Fabaceae species for the first time. A simple AMD–HPTLC screening and quantification technique for GlyCers was developed, which may serve as a tool in searching plant GlyCers for a possible “phyto”-Cer production.
Publications
Ceramides (Cers) are major components of the outermost layer of the skin, the stratum corneum, and play a crucial role in permeability barrier functions. Alterations in Cer composition causing skin diseases are compensated with semisynthetic skin-identical Cers. Plants constitute new resources for Cer production as they contain glucosylceramides (GluCers) as major components. GluCers were purified from industrial waste plant materials, apple pomace (Malus domestica), wheat germs (Triticum sp.), and coffee grounds (Coffea sp.), with GluCer contents of 28.9 mg, 33.7 mg, and 4.4 mg per 100 g of plant material. Forty-five species of GluCers (1–45) were identified with different sphingoid bases, saturated or monounsaturated α-hydroxy fatty acids (C15–28), and β-glucose as polar headgroup. Three main GluCers were hydrolyzed by a recombinant human glucocerebrosidase to produce phyto-Cers (46–48). These studies showed that rare and expensive phyto-Cers can be obtained from industrial food plant residues.
Publications
Main conclusionSolanum tuberosum tropinone reductase I reduced tropinone in vivo. Suppression of tropinone reductase II strongly reduced calystegines in sprouts. Overexpression of putrescine N -methyltransferase did not alter calystegine accumulation.Calystegines are hydroxylated alkaloids formed by the tropane alkaloid pathway. They accumulate in potato (Solanum tuberosum L., Solanaceae) roots and sprouting tubers. Calystegines inhibit various glycosidases in vitro due to their sugar-mimic structure, but functions of calystegines in plants are not understood. Enzymes participating in or competing with calystegine biosynthesis, including putrescine N-methyltransferase (PMT) and tropinone reductases (TRI and TRII), were altered in their activity in potato plants by RNA interference (RNAi) and by overexpression. The genetically altered potato plants were investigated for the accumulation of calystegines and for intermediates of their biosynthesis. An increase in N-methylputrescine provided by DsPMT expression was not sufficient to increase calystegine accumulation. Overexpression and gene knockdown of StTRI proved that S. tuberosum TRI is a functional tropinone reductase in vivo, but no influence on calystegine accumulation was observed. When StTRII expression was suppressed by RNAi, calystegine formation was severely compromised in the transformed plants. Under phytochamber and green house conditions, the StTRII RNAi plants did not show phenotypic alterations. Further investigation of calystegines function in potato plants under natural conditions is enabled by the calystegine deprived StTRII RNAi plants.