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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Plant Sci.
Sec. Plant Metabolism and Chemodiversity
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpls.2025.1557544
This article is part of the Research Topic Metabolomics in Crop Research – Current and Emerging Methodologies, Volume III View all 12 articles

Transcriptional and Metabolic Analysis of Oleic Acid Synthesis in Seedless and Tenera Oil Palm Species

Provisionally accepted
Wen Xu Wen Xu Jerome Jeyakumar John Martin Jerome Jeyakumar John Martin Xinyu Li Xinyu Li *Xiaoyu Liu Xiaoyu Liu *Shunghong Cheng Shunghong Cheng *Hongxing Cao Hongxing Cao *
  • Coconut Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Tropical Agricultural Sciences, Wenchang, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    The oil palm (Elaeis guineensis Jacq.) is a perennial oilseed crop whose mesocarp produces palm oil rich in the unsaturated fatty acid oleic acid, known for its oxidative stability and cardiovascular health benefits. However, the regulatory mechanisms and pathways responsible for variations in oleic acid biosynthesis during fruit development remain inadequately elucidated. The study examined the mesocarp of oil palm fruits from three developmental stages in seedless and Tenera varieties to evaluate oleic acid content. Fruits from Seedless (MS) and Tenera (MT) oil palms, pollinated for 95 days (MS1 and MT1), 125 days (MS2 and MT2), and 185 days (MS3 and MT3), were analyzed using metabolomics via liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). RNA sequencing was conducted to profile gene expression associated to oleic acid biosynthesis and accumulation.Differential genes and metabolites were mapped and functionally enriched through KEGG pathway analysis. The result revealed that SAD, FabD, LACS6, BC, FabB, and FabI were positively associated with oleic acid content, whereas LACS9 exhibited either a negative or strongly negative correlation. By integrating metabolomic and transcriptomic techniques, this study elucidates the distinct mechanisms of oleic acid biosynthesis in seedless and thin-shelled oil palm varieties. These findings provide a scientific foundation for enhancing oleic acid content and improving the quality of oil palm-derived products.

    Keywords: Oil palm, Oleic acid biosynthesis, Transcriptome, Metabolome, Lipid Metabolism

    Received: 08 Jan 2025; Accepted: 05 Feb 2025.

    Copyright: © 2025 Xu, John Martin, Li, Liu, Cheng and Cao. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Xinyu Li, Coconut Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Tropical Agricultural Sciences, Wenchang, China
    Xiaoyu Liu, Coconut Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Tropical Agricultural Sciences, Wenchang, China
    Shunghong Cheng, Coconut Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Tropical Agricultural Sciences, Wenchang, China
    Hongxing Cao, Coconut Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Tropical Agricultural Sciences, Wenchang, China

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.