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. 2007 Oct 9:7:53.
doi: 10.1186/1471-2229-7-53.

An EST database from saffron stigmas

Nunzio D'Agostino  1 , Daniele Pizzichini, Maria Luisa Chiusano, Giovanni Giuliano
Affiliations

An EST database from saffron stigmas

Nunzio D'Agostino et al. BMC Plant Biol. .

Abstract

Background: Saffron (Crocus sativus L., Iridaceae) flowers have been used as a spice and medicinal plant ever since the Greek-Minoan civilization. The edible part - the stigmas - are commonly considered the most expensive spice in the world and are the site of a peculiar secondary metabolism, responsible for the characteristic color and flavor of saffron.

Results: We produced 6,603 high quality Expressed Sequence Tags (ESTs) from a saffron stigma cDNA library. This collection is accessible and searchable through the Saffron Genes database http://www.saffrongenes.org. The ESTs have been grouped into 1,893 Clusters, each corresponding to a different expressed gene, and annotated. The complete set of raw EST sequences, as well as of their electopherograms, are maintained in the database, allowing users to investigate sequence qualities and EST structural features (vector contamination, repeat regions). The saffron stigma transcriptome contains a series of interesting sequences (putative sex determination genes, lipid and carotenoid metabolism enzymes, transcription factors).

Conclusion: The Saffron Genes database represents the first reference collection for the genomics of Iridaceae, for the molecular biology of stigma biogenesis, as well as for the metabolic pathways underlying saffron secondary metabolism.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The saffron spice. A. Crocus flowers. Arrowheads point to the stigmas, which, harvested and desiccated, constitute the saffron spice. B. Biosynthetic pathway of the main saffron color (crocin) and flavors (picrocrocin and safranal) (from [2], modified).
Figure 2
Figure 2
GC content distribution. The number of ESTs is plotted against their GC content. The average GC content is 44.3%.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Assignments of Plant Gene Ontology terms to the Crocus putative transcripts. A. Molecular function B. Biological process C. Cellular component. For details, see Methods.
Figure 4
Figure 4
ClustalW alignments of deduced protein sequences expressed in Crocus stigmas. A. Cl000057:2, aligned with short chain alcohol dehydrogenases: Arabidopsis ABA2 (GenBank acc. NP_175644) and maize TS2 (GenBank acc. P50160). B. Cl000627:1, aligned with Crocus crocetin Glycosyltrasferase 2 (GenBank acc. P50160). C. Cl000468:1, aligned with Bixa and Crocus carboxyl methyltransferases (Genbank acc. CAD70190 and CAD70566) D. C1000045:1, aligned with cauliflower Or (GenBank acc. ABH07405).
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