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The research group of Biochemistry and Enzymatic Biotechnology of the University of Murcia (UMU) has examined the various biotechnological applications developed by this and other international groups, arising from the phenomenon of fluorescence in betalains, such as those related to diseases or contamination of waters. This review, which has obtained the cover of the prestigious magazine Trends in Plant Science, points out that this fluorescence, discovered in flowers by the same group, can be used for the detection of red blood cells infected by the parasite that causes the malaria disease of a fast and cheap way. Likewise, this phenomenon has served to mark proteins, an application also developed by the UMU group.
The process consists of the union of a part of the plant pigments to a protein, turning it into fluorescent.
Thanks to this, they are easily visible and traceable, making their analysis possible. On the other hand, fluorescence can be used as a signal in the production of opiate drugs (such as morphine) in bioreactors, physical and controlled places where microbes, yeasts or bacteria are introduced, with their enzymes or with enzymes from other organisms. In this case, "yeasts have their enzymes to do the reactions they know, and plant enzymes are introduced to do what yeasts don't know," says the UMU researcher, and one of the people responsible for this study, Fernando Gandía-Herrero.
In this way, a yeast, which does not naturally produce opiates, is able to produce them through new reactions. Through fluorescence, it is intended to improve the chemical reaction, that is, the transformation of one compound into another.
"The problem is 'seeing' that improvement when the process has given you 200,000 variants of your enzyme as it is in this specific case.
Fluorescence of betalains helps there, because it allows you to 'see' easily the best ones, which are the most fluorescent" , highlights Gandía-Herrero. Another application would be its use as an easily measurable parameter in metal biosensors in water to analyze its contamination.
In this sense, an international group has linked a metal receptor with a protein that produces fluorescence-related compounds in cells, so that when the receptor binds to a metal, it sends the signal to produce this luminosity. Fluorescence in plants Betalains are pigments present in plants, such as beets or various flowers, which contain nitrogen in their structure and fluoresce. In this sense, the importance of this phenomenon in signaling to pollinating animals is still being investigated. Basic and multidisciplinary research The study highlights the importance of basic research in deep knowledge of the environment around us, in this case of plants with a biochemical approach.
Later, "possible applications come from multiple approaches and disciplines, and possibly from groups around the world.
Science has multidisciplinarity as an ally and is the engine of its applications," concludes Gandía Herrero. Reference: 'Light Emission in Betalains: From Fluorescent Flowers to Biotechnological Applications' (2020).
Trends in PlantScience, 25, 159-175.María Alejandra Guerrero-Rubio, Josefa Escribano, Francisco García-Carmona and Fernando Gandía-Herrero https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tplants.2019.11.001
Source: Universidad de Murcia
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