Mitochondria as a Possible Place for Initial Stages of Steroid Biosynthesis in Plants

With the aim of thorough comparison of steroidogenic systems of plants and animals, transgenic plants of Solanaceae family expressing CYP11A1 cDNA encoding cytochrome P450SCC of mammalian mitochondria were further analysed. Positive effect of CYP11A1 on resistance of the transgenic tobacco plants to the infection by fungal phytopathogene Botrytis cinerea was for the first time detected. Subtle changes in mitochondria of the transgenic Nicotiana tabacum plants expressing mammalian CYP11A1 cDNA were demonstrated by transmissive electron microscopy. The main components of the electron transfer chain of plant mitochondria were for the first time cloned and characterized. It was established that plants from the Solanacea family (tomato, tobacco and potato) contain two different genes with similar exon-intron structures (all contain 8 exons) encoding mitochondrial type ferredoxins (MFDX), and one gene for mitochondrial ferredoxin reductase (MFDXR). The results obtained point out on profound relatedness of electron transfer chains of P450-dependent monooxygenases in mammalian and plant mitochondria and support our previous findings about functional compatability of steroidogenic systems of Plantae and Animalia