Integrated transcriptomic and metabolomic analysis identifies key regulatory genes involved in lignin biosynthesis in Heracleum moellendorffii.

Coniferyl alcohol proportion increases during petiole maturation in Heracleum moellendorffii, and integrated RNA-seq plus metabolomics prioritizes Hm4CL2, HmCCR2, and HmCAD2 as lignin-biosynthesis candidates.

• Why it matters: Lignification strengthens secondary cell walls and supports stress resistance, but the developmental regulatory genes in Heracleum moellendorffii petioles under cultivation remain unclear.
• What they did: The study combined anatomical and firmness measurements with cell-wall biochemistry, metabolomics, and RNA-seq, then used stable heterologous expression in tobacco to test candidate genes.
• The result: Hm4CL2, HmCCR2, and HmCAD2 expression in tobacco altered vascular anatomy and monolignol-related metabolite profiles, providing a developmental framework and targets for future manipulation in H. moellendorffii.

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