Strictosidine Beta-D-Glucosidase (SGD) Gene Study Case in the three Egyptian Cultivars of Catharanthus roseus

Amal M Zweil*, Ibrahim A Ibrah

Abstract

Strictosidineβ-D-glucosidase(SGD)(SGD EC:3.2.1.105) as the key enzyme, allows plants to synthesize the enormous variety of 2000 monoterpenoid indole alkaloids particularly in the three plant families Apocynaceae, Rubiaceae, and Loganiaceae SGD is believed to play a role in the divergence of the biosynthesis toward the various alkaloid structures found in different plant cultivars. The size and intensity of the amplified fragment of the gene were compared among the three cultivars (Albus, Roseus and Ocellatus). Depending on gene expression levels in the three cultivars, the content of strictosidine in each cultivar was predicted.