HMG1 — Lactuca sativa

Summary

LsHMG1 (HMG1) on chromosome 3 of garden lettuce encodes a hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA reductase (HMGR), an enzyme with hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA reductase (NADPH) activity. The gene is associated with the MVA pathway, isoprenoid, sterol, triterpenoid, saponin, and terpenoid anabolism, as well as CoA and pyruvate metabolism. It is linked to responses to jasmonic acid and absence of light, and to phenylpropanoid anabolism. The encoded protein localizes to multiple membranes, including the ER, plastid, chloroplast, peroxisome, and mitochondrial membranes. LsHMG1 is associated with numerous traits, including plant height, biomass, photosynthetic rate, flowering time, male fertility, seed phytosterol content, and defense and wound responses. Studies of related genes in other species link the HMGR family to mevalonate pathway regulation, isoprenoid biosynthesis, and phytosterol content.