Taxus x media Transcriptome or Gene expression

Plant cell culture represents an alternative source for producing high-value secondary metabolites including paclitaxel, which is mainly produced in Taxus and has been widely used in cancer chemotherapy. Phytohormone methyl jasmonate can significantly increase the production of paclitaxel, which is induced in plants as a secondary metabolite possibly in defense against herbivores and pathogens. In cell culture, methyl jasmonate elicits the accumulation of paclitaxel. However, the mechanism is still largely unknown. The transcriptome sequencing may help to obtain insight into the global regulation mechanism of methyl jasmonate on paclitaxel biosynthesis and discover novel key genes involved in this pathway.