Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42473009›Full record

ArticleThe New phytologist2026

Disruption of starch biosynthesis and triacylglycerol degradation impairs growth but improves photosynthesis in Arabidopsis.

Jilian Fan, Dongling Xie, Shivasharanappa S Patil, Bagyalakshmi Muthan, Sanju A Sanjaya, Changcheng Xu

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in The New phytologist, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Jilian FanBiology Department, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, NY, 11973, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4424-9572
Dongling XieBiology Department, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, NY, 11973, USA.
Shivasharanappa S PatilAgricultural and Environmental Research Station and Energy and Environmental Science Institute, West Virginia State University, Institute, WV, 25112, USA.
Bagyalakshmi MuthanAgricultural and Environmental Research Station and Energy and Environmental Science Institute, West Virginia State University, Institute, WV, 25112, USA.
Sanju A SanjayaDepartment of Biology, Agricultural and Environmental Research Station and Energy and Environmental Science Institute, West Virginia State University, Institute, WV, 25112, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3802-318X
Changcheng XuBiology Department, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, NY, 11973, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0179-9462

Funding

Bioenergy Technologies Office DE-SC0012704Bioenergy Technologies Office DE-SC0024647Division of Integrative Organismal Systems 2401935National Institute of Food and Agriculture 2020-38821-31122National Institute of Food and Agriculture 2022-67014-37050National Institute of Food and Agriculture 2023-38821-39587National Institute of Food and Agriculture 2023-38821-39589National Institute of Food and Agriculture 2025-38821-45493
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Enhancing lipid accumulation by redirecting carbon from starch to triacylglycerol (TAG) in vegetative tissues is a promising strategy for developing high-energy-density crops for bioenergy production. However, our understanding of how starch and TAG metabolism interact and how this interaction affects growth and photosynthesis is incomplete. Here, we investigated the metabolic and physiological consequences of disrupting starch biosynthesis and TAG turnover in Arabidopsis thaliana by generating single, double, and triple mutants involving ADG1 (starch biosynthesis), TGD1 (lipid trafficking), and SDP1 (TAG lipase). Unexpectedly, elimination of starch biosynthesis lowered TAG levels in the high-TAG-accumulating tgd1 mutant, primarily through enhanced TAG breakdown. This decline was completely reversed by sucrose supplementation, suggesting that TAG degradation was induced by carbon limitation. Genetic suppression of TAG turnover via SDP1 disruption in the starchless tgd1 adg1-1 background led to a nine-fold rise in leaf TAG accumulation in the tgd1 sdp1 adg1-1 triple mutant, together with enhanced photosynthetic performance. However, this metabolic reprogramming incurred growth penalties. Our results highlight the role of dynamic TAG turnover in maintaining metabolic balance and photosynthesis in starch-deficient backgrounds. These findings underscore the need for refined metabolic engineering strategies that coordinate TAG biosynthesis and degradation to optimize lipid accumulation in bioenergy crops.

Indexed as

ArabidopsisPhotosynthesisStarchTriglyceridesArabidopsis ProteinsCarboxylic Ester HydrolasesLipaseMutationPlant LeavesSucroseArabidopsis ProteinsCarboxylic Ester HydrolasesLipaseSDP1 protein, ArabidopsisStarchSucroseTriglyceridesArabidopsis thalianabioenergygenetic engineeringmetabolismphotosynthesisstarch biosynthesistriacylglycerol

Identifiers

PMID42473009
PMCPMC13491252

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LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.