Dracocephalum kotschyi (Lamiaceae), as one of the remarkable aromatic plants, widely grows and also is cultivated in various temperate regions of Iran. There are diverse reports about the composition of the oil of this plant representing limonene derivatives as its major compounds. There is no report on cloning of monoor sesquiterpene synthases from this plant. In the present study, the aroma p...

Limonene synthase (LS) catalyses the stereo-specific cyclization of geranyl diphosphate (GPP) to form a monocyclic monoterpene, limonene. In an attempt to engineer monoterpene biosynthesis, three expression constructs of LS cDNA of Perilla frutescens, which were designed to be localized in either the plastid, the cytosol or the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), were introduced into tobacco in order t...

The plant terpenoids limonene (C10H16) and α-bisabolene (C15H24) are hydrocarbon precursors to a range of industrially relevant chemicals. High-titer microbial synthesis of limonene and α-bisabolene could pave the way for advances in in vivo engineering of tailor-made hydrocarbons, and production at commercial scale. We have engineered the fast-growing unicellular euryhaline cyanobacterium Syne...

Grand fir (Abies grandis) has been developed as a model system for studying defensive oleoresin formation in conifers in response to insect attack or other injury. The turpentine fraction of the oleoresin is a complex mixture of monoterpene (C10) olefins in which (2)limonene and (2)-aand (2)-b-pinene are prominent components; (2)-limonene and (2)-pinene synthase activities are also induced upon...

Peppermint has considerable commercial value and widely cultivated for essential oil production, especially menthol. The aim of this study was to determine the quantitative expression of pulegone reductase (pr), menthofuran synthase (mfs) and limonene synthase (ls) genes in menthol biosynthesis pathway in Mentha x piperita , using semiquantitative RT-PCR analysis and evaluating menthol producti...

Grand fir (Abies grandis) has been developed as a model system for studying defensive oleoresin formation in conifers in response to insect attack or other injury. The turpentine fraction of the oleoresin is a complex mixture of monoterpene (C10) olefins in which (-)-limonene and (-)-alpha- and (-)-beta-pinene are prominent components; (-)-limonene and (-)-pinene synthase activities are also in...

Circumstantial evidence based on ultrastructural correlation, specific labeling, and subcellular fractionation studies indicates that at least the early steps of monoterpene biosynthesis occur in plastids. (4S)-Limonene synthase, which is responsible for the first dedicated step of monoterpene biosynthesis in mint species, appears to be translated as a preprotein bearing a long plastidial trans...

Terpenes are the major secondary metabolites produced by plants, and have diverse industrial applications as pharmaceuticals, fragrance, solvents, and biofuels. Cyanobacteria are equipped with efficient carbon fixation mechanism, and are ideal cell factories to produce various fuel and chemical products. Past efforts to produce terpenes in photosynthetic organisms have gained only limited succe...

Terpenoid volatiles are isoprene compounds that are emitted by plants to communicate with the environment. In addition to their function in repelling herbivores and attracting carnivorous predators in green tissues, the presumed primary function of terpenoid volatiles released from mature fruits is the attraction of seed-dispersing animals. Mature oranges (Citrus sinensis) primarily accumulate ...

Plants use volatile terpene compounds as odor cues for communicating with the environment. Fleshy fruits are particularly rich in volatiles that deter herbivores and attract seed dispersal agents. We have investigated how terpenes in citrus fruit peels affect the interaction between the plant, insects, and microorganisms. Because limonene represents up to 97% of the total volatiles in orange (C...