Cloning of an anthocyanidin synthase gene homolog from blackcurrant (Ribes nigrum L.) and its expression at different fruit stages
Anthocyanidin synthase (ANS), a 2-oxoglutarate (2OG) and Fe(II)-dependent oxygenase, catalyzes the penultimate step in anthocyanin biosynthesis, from leucoanthocyanidins to anthocyanidins, the first colored compound in the anthocyanin pathway. In this study, a full-length, 1427-bp long cDNA named RnANS1, which is homologous to the anthocyanidin synthase gene, was cloned from blackcurrant using a homologous cloning strategy. RnANS1 is highly homologous to other plant ANS genes at both the nucleotide and amino acid sequence levels.