Transcriptome and metabolite conjoint analysis reveals that exogenous methyl jasmonate regulates terpenoid synthesis in Dryopteris fragrans

Methyl jasmonate (MeJA) is a plant chemical elicitor that has been used to artificially induce chemical defense responses and trigger induced resistance against a broad range of arthropod herbivores. Exogenous spraying of MeJA on plant leaves can promote the synthesis of a variety of plant secondary metabolites and induce the production of defense products. Dryopteris fragrans (L.) Schott is a Dryopteris plant of Dryopteridaceae. Terpenoids in D. fragrans have many functions, such as anti-tumor, antipruritic, antibacterial, anti allergy and so on. Exogenous application of 800 µmol/L MeJA to D. fragrans leaves for 12 h elicited notable physiological and metabolic changes. Physiologically, MDA content decreased, whereas proline, soluble protein, and the activities of antioxidant enzymes (SOD, POD, and CAT) increased. Metabolically, GC-MS analysis revealed a significant accumulation of terpenoids. Transcriptomic profiling identified 27,312 DEGs. KEGG enrichment analysis showed that 14 and 10 DEGs were mapped to the MVA and MEP pathways, respectively, while 3 and 10 DEGs were associated with monoterpenoid and diterpenoid biosynthesis, respectively. These results indicate that the MVA pathway exhibited a more pronounced transcriptional response to MeJA treatment. this study represents the first pioneering report on the global transcriptomic profiling of D. fragrans in response to MeJA treatment. Collectively, these findings lay the groundwork for future investigations into the development, stress resilience, and secondary metabolic pathways of this species.