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Background <p>Heartwood accumulates a diverse range of secondary metabolites contributing to its mechanical strength, characteristic coloration, and long-term durability. <i>Toona sinensis</i> is prized for its heartwood, known for its visually unique reddish-brown hue. Despite this, there is a lack of comprehensive metabolomic investigations in the heartwood of <i>T. sinensis</i>.</p> Results <p>Here, widely targeted metabolomics was employed to analyze the metabolites of <i>T. sinensis</i> and explore the variances in metabolites of xylems aged between 2 and 6&#xa0;years. A total of 772 metabolites were identified, including 102 flavonoids, 100 amino acids and their derivatives, and 147 phenolic acids, and others. The 6-year-old heartwood (6YH) exhibited a distinct secondary metabolite profile. Pathway enrichment analysis revealed increased activity in flavone and flavonol biosynthesis as well as flavonoid biosynthesis pathways in 6YH samples. This aligns with the significantly higher accumulation of flavonoids and anthocyanins in this tissue. Heartwood, on the other hand, contains a notable quantity of flavonoid functional groups. In 6YH, the levels of catechin, epicatechin, and cyanidin were higher, whereas in 6-year-old sapwood (6YS), their concentrations were lower. The concentration of epicatechin and catechin in 6YH was measured at 9684&#xa0;μg/g and 2482&#xa0;μg/g, respectively. The flavonoids primarily localized around the xylem vessels, with higher concentrations in the earlywood compared to the latewood.</p> Conclusions <p>The 6-year-old heartwood of <i>T. sinensis</i> exhibits a unique metabolite profile when compared to other tissues, characterized by a significant accumulation of flavonoids. Most of the flavonoids were localized around the xylem vessels. These findings lay the groundwork for further investigations into the bioactive properties of extracts from <i>T. sinensis</i> heartwood and offer insights that may inform their potential practical applications.</p> Graphic abstract <p></p>

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Widely targeted metabolome combined with morphophysiological analyses of different year-old xylems revealed flavonoids associated with heartwood in Toona sinensis

  • 期刊论文

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  • 发表日期：

    2025年7月1日

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  • Lijiao Fan,
  • Shuxin Chen,
  • Changqing Qu,
  • Yanru Fan,
  • Minyan Wang,
  • Jingxia Yang,
  • Yuntao Ji,
  • Jun Liu,
  • Xiaojiao Han

摘要

Background

Heartwood accumulates a diverse range of secondary metabolites contributing to its mechanical strength, characteristic coloration, and long-term durability. Toona sinensis is prized for its heartwood, known for its visually unique reddish-brown hue. Despite this, there is a lack of comprehensive metabolomic investigations in the heartwood of T. sinensis.

Results

Here, widely targeted metabolomics was employed to analyze the metabolites of T. sinensis and explore the variances in metabolites of xylems aged between 2 and 6 years. A total of 772 metabolites were identified, including 102 flavonoids, 100 amino acids and their derivatives, and 147 phenolic acids, and others. The 6-year-old heartwood (6YH) exhibited a distinct secondary metabolite profile. Pathway enrichment analysis revealed increased activity in flavone and flavonol biosynthesis as well as flavonoid biosynthesis pathways in 6YH samples. This aligns with the significantly higher accumulation of flavonoids and anthocyanins in this tissue. Heartwood, on the other hand, contains a notable quantity of flavonoid functional groups. In 6YH, the levels of catechin, epicatechin, and cyanidin were higher, whereas in 6-year-old sapwood (6YS), their concentrations were lower. The concentration of epicatechin and catechin in 6YH was measured at 9684 μg/g and 2482 μg/g, respectively. The flavonoids primarily localized around the xylem vessels, with higher concentrations in the earlywood compared to the latewood.

Conclusions

The 6-year-old heartwood of T. sinensis exhibits a unique metabolite profile when compared to other tissues, characterized by a significant accumulation of flavonoids. Most of the flavonoids were localized around the xylem vessels. These findings lay the groundwork for further investigations into the bioactive properties of extracts from T. sinensis heartwood and offer insights that may inform their potential practical applications.

Graphic abstract