Expression of the Tyrosine Hydroxylase Gene from Rat Leads to Oxidative Stress in Potato Plants

Catecholamines are biogenic aromatic amines common among both animals and plants. In animals, they are synthesized via tyrosine hydroxylation, while both hydroxylation or decarboxylation of tyrosine are possible in plants, depending on the species, though no tyrosine hydroxylase—a counterpart of the animal enzyme—has been identified yet. It is known that in potato plants, it is the decarboxylation of tyrosine that leads to catecholamine production. In this paper, we present the effects of the induction of an alternative route of catecholamine production by introducing the tyrosine hydroxylase gene from rat. We demonstrate that an animal system can be used by the plant. However, it does not function to synthesize catecholamines. Instead, it leads to elevated reactive oxygen species content and a constant stress condition in the plant, which responds with elevated antioxidant levels and improved resistance to infection.

Expression of tyrosine hydroxylase gene from rat leads to oxidative stress in potato plants

Catecholamines are biogenic aromatic amines common among both animals and plants. In animals they are synthesized via tyrosine hydroxylation, while in plants, both hydroxylation or decarboxylation of tyrosine are possible, depending on the species, though no tyrosine hydroxylase – a counterpart of animal enzyme has been identified yet. It is known that in potato plants it is the decarboxylation of tyrosine that leads to catecholamine production. In this paper we present the effects of induction of an alternative route of catecholamine production by introducing tyrosine hydroxylase gene from rat. We demonstrate that an animal system can be used by the plant, however, it does not function to synthesize catecholamines. Instead it leads to elevated reactive oxygen species content and constant stress condition to the plant which responds with elevated antioxidant level and further with improved resistance to infection.One sentence summaryIntroduction of rat tyrosine hydroxylase gene to potato disturbs catecholamine synthesis, causes oxidative stress and activates antioxidant response.

Genomic analysis of tyrosine hydroxylase gene sequence variations and its association with D-9- tetrahydrocannabinol dependence in addicts

Purpose: To elucidate the genetic basis of drug addiction by conducting a genetic analysis of TH (tyrosine hydroxylase) gene and the novel polymorphisms that might help in understanding addiction and its molecular basis. Methods: Forty-two subjects were recruited into three groups for this study. DNA was isolated from the individuals. PCR amplification of TH gene was carried out and amplicons were sequenced. Genomic characterization of TH gene provided five polymorphic loci – TH 1, TH 2, TH 3, TH 4 and TH 5 which were found among all the groups. Results: According to Shannon’s diversity index, the studied population was between 0.0762 and 0.6032. Heterozygosity index depicted that TH 1 locus was less heterozygous (0.3288), followed by TH 5 (0.3152). TH 1 (0.1462) was the least heterozygous. Genotypic analysis predicted that among these five loci, TH 4 (p = 0.039898) and TH 2 (p = 0.851716) were non-significant (p > 0.05) and obeyed Hardy Weinberg Equilibrium (HWE) law. There are few genetic changes in the studied population that can statistically be associated with drug addiction. Still, their genotypic distribution in the gene pool was very low. Conclusion: On the basis of these findings, drug addiction in the studied population is more likely a social issue rather than a genetic one. Keywords: Tyrosine hydroxylase, SNP, Drug dependence