PAL — Solanum lycopersicum

Summary

SlPAL (SOLYC09G007910.4) encodes a phenylalanine ammonia-lyase, an enzyme with ammonia-lyase activity. The protein contains Phe_NH3-lyase and aromatic lyase domains. In tomato, SlPAL is associated with fruit shelf life, and is linked to disease resistance, pathogen and wound responses, anthocyanin accumulation, lignin biosynthesis, and salicylic acid biosynthesis. It is associated with numerous agronomic traits including fruit dry weight, seedling vigor, root and shoot biomass, chlorophyll content, and responses to abiotic stresses such as chilling, freezing, UV-B, salt, and copper stress. The gene is also associated with flower and seed color, fungal disease response, and phenolic compound metabolism. Studies of related genes in other species link the PAL family to drought tolerance, heat tolerance, herbivore defense, and powdery mildew resistance.