LCYE — Solanum lycopersicum

Summary

SlLCYE (SOLYC12G008980.3) encodes a protein with lycopene epsilon cyclase, lycopene beta cyclase, capsanthin synthase, capsorubin synthase and neoxanthin synthase activities, and belongs to the lycopene cyclase b/e domain family. In tomato, the gene is associated with lutein, lycopene, carotene, xanthophyll and carotenoid content, as well as fruit color, fruit firmness, fruit weight, flower color, leaf color, petal color, and pigment metabolism. It is linked to photosynthetic traits including quantum yield, photosynthetic rate, photochemical quenching, nonphotochemical quenching, and chlorophyll content, and to stress-related phenotypes such as cold tolerance, high light tolerance, photooxidative stress resistance, and UV-B-induced DNA damage. The gene is also connected to nitrate, sucrose, sugar and amino acid content, respiration rate, and stomatal resistance. Studies of related genes in other species link the family to lutein biosynthesis, photoprotection, and photosynthetic performance.