COMT — Capsicum annuum

Summary

CaCOMT (T459_18431) on pepper chromosome 6 encodes a protein with multiple methyltransferase activities, including rhamnetin 3'-O-methyltransferase, quercetin 3-O-methyltransferase, and acetylserotonin O-methyltransferase activity. The gene is associated with lignin, flavonol, coumarin, indole glucosinolate, and melatonin biosynthesis, as well as sulfur metabolism, anthocyanin regulation, and responses to UV, freezing, and mannitol. It has been linked to leaf vein morphology, lignin content, photosynthetic rate, viral disease response, and cell growth traits. The encoded protein localises to the cytosol, nucleus, plastid, plasmodesma, stress granule, and plant-type cell wall. Studies of related genes in other species connect the COMT family to salt, cold, cadmium, and drought tolerance, as well as resistance to root-knot nematode, Botrytis cinerea, and Alternaria brassicicola.