Profiling of Metabolites in Oil Palm Mesocarp at Different Stages of Oil Biosynthesis

Oil palm is one of the most productive oil producing crops and can store up to 90% oil in its fruit mesocarp. However, the biosynthetic regulation and drivers of palm mesocarp development are still not well understood. Multiplatform metabolomics technology was used to profile palm metabolites during six critical stages of fruit development in order to better understand lipid biosynthesis. Significantly higher amino acid levels were observed in palm mesocarp preceding lipid biosynthesis. Nucleosides were found to be in high concentration during lipid biosynthesis, whereas levels of metabolites involved in the tricarboxylic acid cycle were more concentrated during early fruit development. Apart from insights into the regulation of metabolites during fruit development in oil palm, these results provide potentially useful metabolite yield markers and genes of interest for use in breeding programs.油棕（Oil palm）是产油效率最高的油料作物之一，其果实中果皮（mesocarp）可储存高达90%的油脂。然而，目前对于油棕果实中果皮发育的生物合成调控机制及其驱动因素仍不甚明晰。为深入解析油脂生物合成过程，本研究采用多平台代谢组学（multiplatform metabolomics）技术，对油棕果实发育的6个关键阶段的代谢物进行了全景式分析。研究发现，在油脂生物合成启动前的油棕果实中果皮内，氨基酸水平显著升高；在油脂生物合成阶段，核苷类代谢物浓度处于较高水平；而参与三羧酸循环（tricarboxylic acid cycle）的代谢物则在果实发育早期更为富集。本研究不仅揭示了油棕果实发育过程中的代谢物调控规律，还为育种项目提供了潜在的实用型代谢物产量标记物及候选功能基因。