Tree Genetics and Molecular Breeding 2025, Vol.15, No.5, 202-210 http://genbreedpublisher.com/index.php/tgmb 204 regulation and biodiversity protection. Torreya grandis, as a traditional economic forest tree species, holds an important position in the local economy. Torreya seeds and their products can bring stable income to farmers. Its cultivation history dates back over a thousand years and it also carries rich cultural and folk traditions. It is called the “Longevity Tree” and has a unique position in religion, gardens and local culture (Lou et al., 2023; Chen et al., 2023b; Ma et al., 2023). 3 Advances in Synthetic Biology Relevant to T. grandis 3.1 Key tools: CRISPR/Cas genome editing, metabolic engineering platforms The commonly used tools for synthetic biology research on Torreya grandis include CRISPR/Cas gene editing and metabolic engineering. Gene editing can precisely regulate the expression of key metabolic genes. For instance, researchers have found that the TgSQS (squalene synthase) gene plays a significant role in the synthesis of β -sitosterol and squalene. By introducing it into the model plant, the content of the target product increased significantly, which provided a basis for the metabolic engineering modification of the functional components of Torreya grandis. In addition, some transcription factors (such as TgWRKY3) can also regulate metabolic genes, and they are also potential targets in synthetic biology (Zhang et al., 2023). 3.2 Synthetic pathways for oil, flavonoids, and terpenoids The seeds of Torreya grandis contain a lot of high-value substances such as oils (like tocopherol), flavonoids and terpenoids. Full-length transcriptome and multi-omics studies have revealed the synthetic pathways of these substances and key enzyme genes (such as TgVTE2b, TgVTE4, TgDFR6, etc.) (Lou et al., 2019; Tao et al., 2024). In a low-phosphorus environment, the expression of the flavonoid synthesis gene TgDFR6 increases, thereby promoting the accumulation of flavonoids (Wang et al., 2024). Furthermore, the synthetic pathways of terpenoids such as squalene and β -sitosterol have been resolved, and the heterologous expression of related genes can increase the content of the target products (Figure 2) (Zhang et al., 2023). These achievements provide theoretical support for the reconstruction of the metabolic network of Torreya grandis using synthetic biology. Figure 2 Sterol biosynthesis-related genes in Torreya grandis responded to drought stress (Adopted from Zhang et al., 2023)
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