Articles
8(2) 2015 issue
8(2) 2015 issue
March 2015 issue
Southern Cross Publishing Group©2015
Australia
Australia
Genetic regulation and the impact of omics in fruit ripening
Railson Schreinert dos Santos, Luis Willian Pacheco Arge, Savana Irribarem Costa, Natγ Dienes Machado, Paulo Celso de Mello-Farias, Cesar Valmor Rombaldi, Antonio Costa de Oliveira*
Plant Genomics and Breeding Laboratory, Technology Development Center, Federal University of Pelotas, RS, Brazil
Fruit plants propagation Laboratory, Crop Science Department, Federal University of Pelotas, RS, Brazil
Food Biotechnology Lab, Food Science and Technology Department, Federal University of Pelotas, RS, Brazil
Abstract
Fruits are highly consumed products, especially due to their colorful appearance, sweet taste and healthy appeal. Some of these qualitative aspects such as size, color, acidity, flavor, sweetness and juiciness, which have great influence upon consumer, are dependent of specific physiological processes that occur during ripening. After a certain point, new physiological changes take place, which result in unsuitable characteristics for consumption and large losses for both farmers and consumers, the understanding of ripening regulation is of crucial economic importance. The new technologies that are currently becoming available are contributing tremendously for a better understanding of fruit growth and ripening. In this report, we focus on discussing the knowledge obtained mainly through the study of ripening mutants. We also point some future directions taking into account the impact of new technologies on the understanding of postharvest biology, also showing that phylogenetic analysis of ripening related loci from different species can reveal interesting differences between climacteric and non-climacteric fruits, helping to understand and to take control over ripening regulation.
Pages 78-88 | Full Text PDF | Supplementary Data PDF
.
Transcriptomics analysis of Chinese hawthorn (Crataegus pinnatifida) provides insights into the biosynthesis of polyphenolic compounds
Mingxia Yang, Zhigang Dong, Qiufen Cao, Mingchang Chen*
The Institute of Loess Plateau, Shanxi University, Taiyuan, Peoples Republic of China
Pomology Institute of Shanxi Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Taigu, Peoples Republic of China
Department of Agriculture Shanxi Province, Taiyuan, Peoples Republic of China
Abstract
Due to its high polyphenolic compound content, Chinese hawthorn, which belongs to the Rosaceae family, is a popular fruit consumed as food and medicine source in China. However, little genetic studies have been performed on hawthorn, partially because of the lack of genomic resources. To this end, we performed de novo transcriptomics analysis of hawthorn using the cost-effective Illumina paired-end RNA sequencing technology. Briefly explain how study was conducted and what measured then. 6.5 Gbp data were obtained and assembled into 83,817 transcripts. Approximately 98% of the transcripts had homologous in the available database, and 97% had homologous hits in the apple, pear and peach genomes. A total of 208 candidate key enzymes potentially involved in polyphenolic compound biosynthetic pathways were identified and compared to their homologous in related species. Approximately 77.12% of transcripts (64,636) were predicted to contain CDS (coding sequences). Using gene family comparative analysis, 14,800 gene families and 20,943 specific genes of hawthorn were identified. These specific genes were enriched in 3 secondary metabolite pathways (stilbenoid, diarylheptanoid and gingerol biosynthesis, phenylpropanoid biosynthesis and plavone and flavonol biosynthesis) that are related to phenolic compound biosynthesis and other basic metabolic processes. In addition, 10,472 simple sequence repeats (SSRs) were detected.
Pages 89-95 | Full Text PDF | Supplementary Data xls
.
Comparative proteomic analysis of two rice cultivars (Oryza sativa L.) contrasting in Brown Planthopper (BPH) stress resistance
Panatda Jannoey*, Weerathep Pongprasert, Saisamon Lumyong, Sittiruk Roytrakul, Mika Nomura
Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Medical Science, Naresuan University, Phitsanulok, 65000, Thailand
Department of Agriculture Science, Faculty of Agriculture Natural Resource and Environment, Naresuan University, Phitsanulok, 65000, Thailand
Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai, 50200,Thailand
Genome Institute, National Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, National Science and Technology Development Agency, Klong Luang, Pathumthani, Thailand
Department of Life Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Kagawa University, Miki, Japan
Abstract
The brown planthopper (BPH) is a pest which destroys rice paddy fields. To determine the molecular mechanism of the resistance of rice plants to BPH, the proteomic profiles of two contrasting rice cultivars, TN1 (susceptible) and PTB33 (resistant), were compared. This information was then used to investigate protein expression during BPH feeding. Rice seedlings were inoculated with BPH nymphs to screen for resistance behavior among five selected cultivars. Following inoculation, small BPHs were introduced to the rice seedlings at a ratio of 8:1 (BPH: rice seedling) and the hopperburn symptom on each cultivar was measured over the fourteen day period of observation. The samples demonstrating the highest resistance to BPH (PTB33) and susceptibility (TN1) were then chosen for protein extraction and comparison. An observed total of nineteen protein spots demonstrated significant differences between the two cultivars, with a two-dimensional electrophoresis (2-DE) and mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) approach adopted to identify the results of the experiment. The protein spots were then categorized into different groups according to the presence of a carbohydrate metabolism, antioxidants, protein synthesis, ATP synthesis, photosynthesis and stress response proteins. 2-Cys peroxiredoxin BAS1 (2-CysPrx-BAS1), putative inorganic pyrophosphatase (IPPase) and eukaryotic elongation factor 1 (EF-1) were reported to be 2.09, 2.25 and 2.22-fold up-regulated in resistant cultivar, respectively. It has also been shown that fructokinase (FK) and phosphoglyceratemutase (PGmutase) were only found using CBB staining in resistant cultivar, but not in susceptible cultivar. The protein up-regulation observed in the resistant cultivar might promote glycolysis and lignin biosynthesis via the phenylpropanoid pathway, which offers such plants protection against BPH infestation.
Pages 96-105 | Full Text PDF | Supplementary Data
.
Separation of ovule proteins during female gametophyte cellularization of Pinus tabuliformis using 2D-DIGE
Kun Lv, Min Zhang, Wei Zhang, Jian-qing Hao and Cai-xia Zheng*
College of Biological Science and Biotechnology; Beijing Forestry University
Abstract
Female gametophyte cellularization is an important process in ovules development of Pinus tabuliformis Carr., which is regulated and characterized by multiple proteins. To separate the differential expressed proteins in female gametophyte cellularization, 2D-DIGE were used with its high efficiency and repeatability. The ovule proteins were extracted in prophase and anaphase of the process with TCA-acetone and rinsed with ice-cold acetone at least five times. The protein concentration of the sample solutions was adjusted to 1.5 g·L-1 - 2.5 g·L-1, and the pH of the solutions was kept at 8.5 before labeling. A total of 800 proteins were observed on the 2D-DIGE gel using the optimized protocol. Ninety-one differential expressed proteins were separated with 2D-DIGE, while only 62 were separated with 2D-E. Eleven proteins were specific to prophase and 14 proteins were specific to anaphase. During the cellularization process, 45 proteins were up-regulated and 21 proteins were down-regulated. This study established an 2D-DIGE protocol for proteomics research on the development of P. tabuliformis ovules, and provided a technical reference for 2D-DIGE in tissues that are rich in secondary metabolites like P. tabuliformis.
Pages 106-111 | Full Text PDF
.
A systematic bioinformatics analysis of small proteins in plants
Xinmiao Jia, Jun Yu, Jiayan Wu*, Jingfa Xiao*
CAS Key Laboratory of Genome Sciences and Information, Beijing Institute of Genomics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, Peoples Republic of China
University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, Peoples Republic of China
Abstract
Small proteins (SPs, <=100 amino acids in length) are prevalent in all prokaryotes and eukaryotes. They are known to perform varieties of relevant functions and participate in regulation of various biological processes. Although integrated studies of SPs in prokaryotes and animals have been carried out, the systematic investigation on plant SPs still remains an unwritten story. This is mainly because of the lack of sequenced whole genomes in plant, which is improving by the sequence data explosion triggered by next generation sequencing. In this study, we extract 37,003 SPs from 13 whole genome sequenced plants, including 3 green algae, 1 bryophyte, 3 monocots and 6 dicots. We mainly analysed the compositional features, conservative relations, enriched functions in different conserved groups, and the functional domain and evolution characteristics of plant SPs. We observed that the majority of SPs (64.20%) are species specific and 89.31% of these species-specific SPs do not match with any gene ontology (GO) functional annotation. It seems that organisms are likely to enrich SPs to exert specialized functions. By grouping SPs on the basis of sequence conservation within lineages, we noticed that SPs perform lineage-specific functions and many corresponding biological functions emerge with the evolution of SPs. The domains probably evolve independently in SPs while change to other cooperation patterns in the long course of evolution. In addition, gene duplication could be the primary force in the evolution of some plant SPs, for example, small nuclear ribonucleoproteins.
Pages 112-121 | Full Text PDF | Supplementary Data
.
Identification of QTLs for four physiological traits in an advanced backcross population of wheat under drought stress
Mohamed N. Barakat*, A. A. Al-Doss, K. A. Moustafa, A. A. Elshafei, A. K. Salem
Plant Production Department, College of Food and Agriculture Sciences, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Biotechnology Laboratory, Crop Science Department, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Alexandria, Egypt
Genetics and Cytology Department, National Research Centre, El-Dokki, Cairo, Egypt
Department of Field Crops Research, National Research Centre, El-Dokki, Cairo, Egypt
Abstract
Advanced backcross quantitative trait locus analysis was applied to identify QTLs for chlorophyll content, flag leaf senescence, cell membrane stability and the abscisic acid content traits under water- stressed conditions in BC2F2 wheat families. The parents and 75 BC2F2 families were evaluated phenotypically for drought tolerance using two irrigation treatments [0.25 and 0.75 m3 (H2O) m-2 (soil)]. The polymorphism among parental genotypes and 75 BC2F2 families were tested using 40, 98 and 400 different TRAP, SRAP and SSR primer combinations, respectively. Mapping analysis produced 14 QTLs, in which a single QTL explained 9- 39% of the phenotypic variation. These QTLs distributed on eight chromosomes. Four QTLs were significantly associated with chlorophyll content and distributed on four chromosomes. Three QTLs significantly influenced flag leaf senescence and mapped on chromosomes 1B, 2B and 3B. Two QTLs for cell membrane stability were identified and mapped on each chromosome of 2B and 6B. Five QTLs for abscisic acid content were identified on chromosomes 2B, 3B, 5B, 6B and 3D. All of the QTLs for the four physiological traits had a positive additive effect except for flag leaf senescence which had negative additive effects. The results also showed that the regression analysis for the relationship between the TRAP, SRAP and SSR markers and the phenotypes of BC2F2 families for the four physiological traits was highly significant. Therefore, the TRAP, SRAP and SSR markers linked to the QTL for the drought tolerance can be further used in breeding for drought tolerance in wheat.
Pages 122-129 | Full Text PDF | Supplementary Data
.
Evaluation of Na+ enrichment and expression of some carbohydrate related genes in indica rice seedlings under salt stress
Cattarin Theerawitaya, Nana Yamada, Thapanee Samphumphuang, Suriyan Cha-um*, Chalermpol Kirdmanee, Teruhiro Takabe
National Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (BIOTEC), National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA), 113 Thailand Science Park, Paholyothin Road, Khlong Nuang, Khlong Luang, Pathum Thani 12120 Thailand
International Research Center for Natural Environmental Science, Meijo University, 1-501 Shiogamagushi, Tenpaku-ku, Nagoya 468-8502, Japan
Abstract
Salt-affected soil is one of the most important abiotic stresses, leading to reduce rice productivity in many regions of the world. The objective of this investigation was to determine the Na+, soluble sugar and starch contents and expression of some starch-related genes in two genotypes, Pokkali (salt tolerant) and IR29 (salt sensitive), grown under 200 mM NaCl. Three-week-old rice seedlings cvs. Pokkali and IR29 were treated with 0 or 200 mM NaCl subsequently Na+, starch content, soluble sugar and growth characters were evaluated. The Na+ concentration in salt-stressed seedlings cv. IR29 was reached following leaf sheath>leaf blade>root tissues. Na+ accumulation in leaf blade and leaf sheath was positively related to soluble sugar enrichment (r2>0.68). In starch biosynthesis, OsAGPS2b mRNA expression in leaf blade of rice seedlings cv. Pokkali was up-regulated for 66%, when exposed to 200 mM NaCl for 48h, leading to starch accumulation. Soluble starch content in salt-stressed seedlings was peaked to 68.84 mg g-1 FW in the leaf blade of cv. Pokkali and 165.83 mg g-1 FW in leaf sheath of cv. IR29 which was confirmed by iodine dye staining. In cv. Pokkali, soluble starch in the leaf blade of salt-stressed seedlings was enhanced and correlated with Na+ gathering CoroNa green emission. Growth performances of indica rice cv. IR29 seedlings were significantly declined when subjected to salt stress for 4 d. Na+ absorption by root tissue was greater in IR29 than that in Pokkali. The starch concentration in salt-stressed seedlings of cv. Pokkali was the maximum to 68.8 mg g-1 FW in the leaf blade, and it related to up-regulated levels of OsAGPS2b mRNA and OsGPL1. The study concludes that the regulation of carbohydrate metabolism in salt tolerant cultivar of rice may play a key role as a major salt defense mechanism when seedlings subjected to 200 mM NaCl.
Pages 130-140 | Full Text PDF
.
Identification and abiotic stress analysis of calmodulin-binding transcription activator/signal responsive genes in non-heading Chinese cabbage (Brassica campestris ssp. chinensis Makino)
Rong Hu, Zhen Wang, Peng Wu, Jun Tang, Xilin Hou*
Horticultural Department, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing 210095, China
State Key Laboratory of Crop Genetics &Germplasm Enhancement, Nanjing, 210095, China
Key Laboratory of Southern Vegetable Crop Genetic Improvement, Ministry of Agriculture, Nanjing 210095, China
Abstract
In cells, calmodulin (CaM) is the most remarkable Ca2+ transducer. BcCAMTA gene family members are calmodulin-binding transcription activators, which contain new type of sequence-specific DNA-binding domain (CG-1), an ankyrin repeats and tow IQ calmodulin-binding motifs. In our study, 8 calmodulin-binding transcription activator (CAMTA) genes were identified from non-heading Chinese cabbage (Brassica campestris ssp. chinensis Makino, NHCC), and named as BcCAMTA1, BcCAMTA2.1, BcCAMTA2.2, BcCAMTA3.1, BcCAMTA3.2, BcCAMTA4, BcCAMTA5 and BcCAMTA6 through BcCAMTA genes cloning and according AtCAMTAs. Compared with the classification between Arabidopsis and Chinese cabbage, BcCAMTA family was divided into six subgroups (respectively named as BcCAMTA1-6). Subcellular localization prediction showed that most of the BcCAMTAs were located in the nucleus, except BcCAMTA2.2 and BcCAMTA6 that were located in the cytosol, indicating the different function among BcCAMTAs. The evolution and phylogenetic analysis of BcCAMTAs together with their orthologs from other species showed that CAMTA transcription factor family members duplicated in evolution of species, as well as BcCAMTAs, which showed closer evolutionary relationship with Arabidopsis and Chinese cabbage. Seedlings were exposed to four abiotic stresses including cold, drought, copper ion and nitrate stress to explore the transcriptional levels of BcCAMTA genes. The result exhibited that BcCAMTAs, except for BcCAMTA2, were up-regulated under cold stress in 4 h, among which showed the positive regulation to resist cold stress of NHCC. The expression of BcCAMTA2.1 and BcCAMTA3.2 were found significantly differential expression in five development stages of NHCC, and expressed highest in flowering stage.
Pages 141-147 | Full Text PDF | Supplementary Data
.
Transcriptome-wide identification of genes related to fatty acid biosynthesis in the medicinal plant Salvia miltiorrhiza
Jianhui Zhang*, Haimei Chen*, Kai Wu, Chang Liu
Institute of Medicinal Plant Development, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, 151 Malianwa North Road, Haidian district, Beijing100193, P.R. China
Abstract
Salvia miltiorrhiza is an important medicinal plant that is commonly used in the treatment of cardiovascular diseases and neuro-asthenic insomnia. How to increase the production of its active components is an active area of research. Since the fatty acid biosynthesis pathway is linked to the production of its active components, here we performed a systematic identification of the genes involved in fatty acid biosynthesis based on RNA-Seq data from three different types of tissues of S. miltiorrhiza. First, 76 fatty acid biosynthesis-related genes were identified based on sequence similarity to known genes, which were classified into 29 gene families. Second, multiple sequence alignment and phylogenetic analyses were performed for members of each protein family. One of these families, the Acyl Carrier Protein (ACP) family is the important cofactor protein involved in fatty acid biosynthesis, demonstrated significant variations among the sequences from different species. Third, qRT-PCR was used to validate the expression levels for 49 genes. It is found that the expression profiles obtained using qRT-PCR were consistent with those obtained from the RNA-Seq results for 36 genes (74%). Forth, hierarchical clustering analysis of the 76 genes based on their gene expression profiles across the tissues revealed eight major clusters. Last, detailed examination showed that 28 genes were significantly differentially expressed among the tissues. These tissue-specific genes might serve as the switches for the regulation of fatty acid biosynthesis in S. miltiorrhiza. In summary, the current study has identified and characterized 76 novels genes involved in the fatty acid biosynthesis pathway in S. miltiorrhiza, laying the foundation for their future detailed functional characterization.
Pages 148-158 | Full Text PDF | Supplementary Data 1 | Supplementary Data 2
.
Physiological and proteomic analysis of the response to drought stress in an inbred Korean maize line
Sang Gon Kim, Jin-Seok Lee, Jung-Tae Kim, Young Sang Kwon, Dong-Won Bae, Hwan Hee Bae1, Beom-Young Son, Seong-Bum Baek, Young-Up Kwon, Mi-Ok Woo, and Seonghyu Shin*
National Institute of Crop Science, Rural Development Administration, Suwon 441-857, South Korea
Division of Applied Life Science (BK21plus Program), Plant Molecular Biology and Biotechnology Research Center, Gyeongsang National University, Jinju 660-701, Republic of Korea
Central Instrument Facility, Gyeongsang National University, Jinju 660-701, Republic of Korea
Department of Plant Science, Seoul National University, Seoul 151-921, Republic of Korea
Abstract
Understanding the response of a crop to water deficiency is the first step towards breeding drought-tolerant varieties. In this study, inbred maize (Zea mays L.) line KS140 was subjected to drought stress by withholding water for 10 days at the V5 or V6 leaf stage. Water-deficient plants experienced a decrease in relative leaf water content, stomatal conductance, net CO2 assimilation rate, and water use efficiency compared to well-watered plants. This was accompanied by a decrease in the relative water content that resulted in severe growth retardation (75% decrease in leaf area, and 64% and 56% decrease in aerial tissue and root dry matter, respectively). Leaf chlorophyll content was unchanged. Two-dimensional electrophoresis protein expression profiles were compared between well-watered and water-deficient plants. Differential expression was observed for 29 protein spots, and these were identified using MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry. Of these proteins, 34% were involved in metabolism, 24% in response to stress, 14% in photosynthesis, 7% in protein modification, and 14% were proteins of unknown function. Of the 29 differentially expressed proteins, 24 and 5 protein spots were up- and down-regulated in water-deficient plants, respectively. Two pathogenesis-related proteins, an abscisic stress-ripening protein and heat shock protein 1, were expressed only under drought conditions. This study provides a protein profile of a Korean maize inbred line during drought stress, which will be valuable for future studies of the molecular mechanisms underlying drought resistance and for development of selective breeding markers for drought tolerance in maize.
Pages 159-168 | Full Text PDF | Supplementary Data
.
Identification and characterization of a novel abiotic stress responsive ATPase gene from rice
Shengbin Liu, Xufeng Cao, Yongrong Liao, Rongjun Chen*, Zhengjun Xu, Xiaoling Gao, Lihua Li, Jianqing Zhu
Rice Research Institute of Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu, Sichuan 611130, China
Abstract
Adenosine triphosphatases (ATPases) belonging to the AAA protein family (ATPases Associated with various cellular Activities) are involved in a wide range of abiotic stress. OsATPase, is one of the gene among these stress genes. However, the knowledge about their roles in developmental processes and response to various stimuli are still very limited in rice. In order to discover new stress tolerance genes in rice (Oryza sativa L.), expression profiles were obtained for leaf and panicle tissues at seedling, booting and heading stages of indica cultivar Peiai 64S plants under cold, drought or heat stresses using the GeneChip Rice Genome Array (Affymetrix) representing 51, 279 transcripts from japonica and indica rice. OsATPase was highly expressed in leaves and panicles and in response to cold stress in seedlings and booting stage. Real-time quantitative PCR analysis showed that the result was almost consensus with GeneChip Rice Genome Array, suggesting that OsATPase is a multiple stress responsive gene in rice. In order to study its function in stress tolerance, we cloned the cDNA of the gene through amplification by RT-PCR. Sequence analysis showed that the cDNA encodes a protein of 528 amino acid residues with M.W.60kD and pI7.8. Analysis of the putative promoter region for candidate cis-regulatory elements using Plant CARE software identified some cis-elements related to stress responses. Based on the earlier mentioned analysis and results obtained, we propose that OsATPase is a novel candidate gene involved in stress tolerance in rice.
Pages 169- 177 | Full Text PDF
.
"Type A" response regulators are involved in the plant-microbe interaction
Fariba Rafiei*, Zohreh Torabi, Esmaeil Ebrahimie
Department of Plant Breeding and Biotechnology, College of Agriculture, Shahrekord University, Shahrekord, Iran
Department of Biology, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada
Department of Crop Production and Plant Breeding, College of Agriculture, Shiraz University, Shiraz, Iran
Discipline of Genetics, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
Abstract
Plant-microbe interaction can be established as either symbiotic or pathogenic association. Regardless of any type of interaction interplayed, common strategy can be seen in the partners. Recent advances in bioinformatics and availability of abundant transcriptomics data have provided new tools for comparative analysis and achieving significant insights into underlying regulatory background of symbiosis and pathogenesis. In the present study, to find the genes which are involved in both pathogenic and symbiotic interactions, we used the microarray data pertaining bacterial interactions in M. truncatula. Those data which were publically available in NCBI analyzed using Expression Console and FlexyArray. In order to interpret gene expression patterns and investigate the relationship between co-over expressed genes, a literature survey was performed using the tools provided by Pathway Studio v9 (Elsevier). Our data analysis identified type-A response regulators (RRs) as genes that potentially respond to pathogenic and symbiotic interactions. Type-A RRs act as negative regulators of cytokinins. This study speculates that plants do not recognize bacterial pathogens from symbionts at early stage of plant-microbe interactions. Pathway analysis revealed the involvement of WUSCHEL (WUS) and SIAMES (SIM) in cross-talk between pathogen and type-A of RRs. Considering the central role of WUS and SIM in cell division, we suggest that the reduction of growth by repression of cell division is one of the adaptive responses in plants to bacterial interaction. In this way, plants try to preserve the limited energy of the mother cell and to avoid heritable damage.
Pages 178-182 | Full Text PDF | Supplementary Data
.
Identification and expression analyses of chitinase genes in mulberry (Morus L.) plants
Xuwei Wang, Ningjia He*, Qiwei Zeng, Zhonghuai Xiang
State Key Laboratory of Silkworm Genome Biology, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China
Abstract
In the present study, we identified chitinase genes in the genome of mulberry for the first time. The mulberry genome encodes 20 chitinase genes, which are grouped into two main families and organized into five classes. The genomic structures and phylogenetic relationships of mulberry chitinase genes were analyzed, which provided a genetic basis for understanding the functions of these genes. We further investigated the expression of mulberry chitinase genes in five different tissues including root, bark, bud, flower, and leaf. Our results showed that there was no correlation between the spatial expression patterns of chitinase genes and their classification based on the conserved domains. Furthermore, six mulberry chitinase genes were used to detect transcriptional differences in their response to insect wounding, fungal infection, and biochemical elicitors. We found that different mulberry chitinase genes were induced by insect wounding and fungal infection, suggesting that these chitinases help the plant to cope with the challenges from insects and fungi.
Pages 183-189 | Full Text PDF | Supplementary Data
.
Advances in research of fasciclin-like arabinogalactan proteins (FLAs) in plants
Lina Zang, Tangchun Zheng, Xiaohua Su*
State Key Laboratory of Tree Genetics and Breeding, Northeast Forestry University, Harbin, 150040, China
State Key Laboratory of Tree Genetics and Breeding, Research Institute of Forestry, Chinese Academy of Forestry, Beijing, 100091, China
Key Laboratory of Tree Breeding and Cultivation, State Forestry Administration, Beijing, 100091, China
Abstract
Fasciclin-like arabinogalactan proteins (FLAs) family, belonging to a subclass of arabinogalactan proteins (AGPs), contain AGP-like glycosylated domains and fasciclin-like domains. FLAs are widely distributed in various plants and are involved in plant growth and development. In this paper, recent advances in the structure, expression pattern, biological function and application prospect of plant FLAs are summarized.
Pages 190-194 | Full Text PDF
Railson Schreinert dos Santos, Luis Willian Pacheco Arge, Savana Irribarem Costa, Natγ Dienes Machado, Paulo Celso de Mello-Farias, Cesar Valmor Rombaldi, Antonio Costa de Oliveira*
Plant Genomics and Breeding Laboratory, Technology Development Center, Federal University of Pelotas, RS, Brazil
Fruit plants propagation Laboratory, Crop Science Department, Federal University of Pelotas, RS, Brazil
Food Biotechnology Lab, Food Science and Technology Department, Federal University of Pelotas, RS, Brazil
Abstract
Fruits are highly consumed products, especially due to their colorful appearance, sweet taste and healthy appeal. Some of these qualitative aspects such as size, color, acidity, flavor, sweetness and juiciness, which have great influence upon consumer, are dependent of specific physiological processes that occur during ripening. After a certain point, new physiological changes take place, which result in unsuitable characteristics for consumption and large losses for both farmers and consumers, the understanding of ripening regulation is of crucial economic importance. The new technologies that are currently becoming available are contributing tremendously for a better understanding of fruit growth and ripening. In this report, we focus on discussing the knowledge obtained mainly through the study of ripening mutants. We also point some future directions taking into account the impact of new technologies on the understanding of postharvest biology, also showing that phylogenetic analysis of ripening related loci from different species can reveal interesting differences between climacteric and non-climacteric fruits, helping to understand and to take control over ripening regulation.
Pages 78-88 | Full Text PDF | Supplementary Data PDF
.
Transcriptomics analysis of Chinese hawthorn (Crataegus pinnatifida) provides insights into the biosynthesis of polyphenolic compounds
Mingxia Yang, Zhigang Dong, Qiufen Cao, Mingchang Chen*
The Institute of Loess Plateau, Shanxi University, Taiyuan, Peoples Republic of China
Pomology Institute of Shanxi Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Taigu, Peoples Republic of China
Department of Agriculture Shanxi Province, Taiyuan, Peoples Republic of China
Abstract
Due to its high polyphenolic compound content, Chinese hawthorn, which belongs to the Rosaceae family, is a popular fruit consumed as food and medicine source in China. However, little genetic studies have been performed on hawthorn, partially because of the lack of genomic resources. To this end, we performed de novo transcriptomics analysis of hawthorn using the cost-effective Illumina paired-end RNA sequencing technology. Briefly explain how study was conducted and what measured then. 6.5 Gbp data were obtained and assembled into 83,817 transcripts. Approximately 98% of the transcripts had homologous in the available database, and 97% had homologous hits in the apple, pear and peach genomes. A total of 208 candidate key enzymes potentially involved in polyphenolic compound biosynthetic pathways were identified and compared to their homologous in related species. Approximately 77.12% of transcripts (64,636) were predicted to contain CDS (coding sequences). Using gene family comparative analysis, 14,800 gene families and 20,943 specific genes of hawthorn were identified. These specific genes were enriched in 3 secondary metabolite pathways (stilbenoid, diarylheptanoid and gingerol biosynthesis, phenylpropanoid biosynthesis and plavone and flavonol biosynthesis) that are related to phenolic compound biosynthesis and other basic metabolic processes. In addition, 10,472 simple sequence repeats (SSRs) were detected.
Pages 89-95 | Full Text PDF | Supplementary Data xls
.
Comparative proteomic analysis of two rice cultivars (Oryza sativa L.) contrasting in Brown Planthopper (BPH) stress resistance
Panatda Jannoey*, Weerathep Pongprasert, Saisamon Lumyong, Sittiruk Roytrakul, Mika Nomura
Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Medical Science, Naresuan University, Phitsanulok, 65000, Thailand
Department of Agriculture Science, Faculty of Agriculture Natural Resource and Environment, Naresuan University, Phitsanulok, 65000, Thailand
Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai, 50200,Thailand
Genome Institute, National Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, National Science and Technology Development Agency, Klong Luang, Pathumthani, Thailand
Department of Life Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Kagawa University, Miki, Japan
Abstract
The brown planthopper (BPH) is a pest which destroys rice paddy fields. To determine the molecular mechanism of the resistance of rice plants to BPH, the proteomic profiles of two contrasting rice cultivars, TN1 (susceptible) and PTB33 (resistant), were compared. This information was then used to investigate protein expression during BPH feeding. Rice seedlings were inoculated with BPH nymphs to screen for resistance behavior among five selected cultivars. Following inoculation, small BPHs were introduced to the rice seedlings at a ratio of 8:1 (BPH: rice seedling) and the hopperburn symptom on each cultivar was measured over the fourteen day period of observation. The samples demonstrating the highest resistance to BPH (PTB33) and susceptibility (TN1) were then chosen for protein extraction and comparison. An observed total of nineteen protein spots demonstrated significant differences between the two cultivars, with a two-dimensional electrophoresis (2-DE) and mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) approach adopted to identify the results of the experiment. The protein spots were then categorized into different groups according to the presence of a carbohydrate metabolism, antioxidants, protein synthesis, ATP synthesis, photosynthesis and stress response proteins. 2-Cys peroxiredoxin BAS1 (2-CysPrx-BAS1), putative inorganic pyrophosphatase (IPPase) and eukaryotic elongation factor 1 (EF-1) were reported to be 2.09, 2.25 and 2.22-fold up-regulated in resistant cultivar, respectively. It has also been shown that fructokinase (FK) and phosphoglyceratemutase (PGmutase) were only found using CBB staining in resistant cultivar, but not in susceptible cultivar. The protein up-regulation observed in the resistant cultivar might promote glycolysis and lignin biosynthesis via the phenylpropanoid pathway, which offers such plants protection against BPH infestation.
Pages 96-105 | Full Text PDF | Supplementary Data
.
Separation of ovule proteins during female gametophyte cellularization of Pinus tabuliformis using 2D-DIGE
Kun Lv, Min Zhang, Wei Zhang, Jian-qing Hao and Cai-xia Zheng*
College of Biological Science and Biotechnology; Beijing Forestry University
Abstract
Female gametophyte cellularization is an important process in ovules development of Pinus tabuliformis Carr., which is regulated and characterized by multiple proteins. To separate the differential expressed proteins in female gametophyte cellularization, 2D-DIGE were used with its high efficiency and repeatability. The ovule proteins were extracted in prophase and anaphase of the process with TCA-acetone and rinsed with ice-cold acetone at least five times. The protein concentration of the sample solutions was adjusted to 1.5 g·L-1 - 2.5 g·L-1, and the pH of the solutions was kept at 8.5 before labeling. A total of 800 proteins were observed on the 2D-DIGE gel using the optimized protocol. Ninety-one differential expressed proteins were separated with 2D-DIGE, while only 62 were separated with 2D-E. Eleven proteins were specific to prophase and 14 proteins were specific to anaphase. During the cellularization process, 45 proteins were up-regulated and 21 proteins were down-regulated. This study established an 2D-DIGE protocol for proteomics research on the development of P. tabuliformis ovules, and provided a technical reference for 2D-DIGE in tissues that are rich in secondary metabolites like P. tabuliformis.
Pages 106-111 | Full Text PDF
.
A systematic bioinformatics analysis of small proteins in plants
Xinmiao Jia, Jun Yu, Jiayan Wu*, Jingfa Xiao*
CAS Key Laboratory of Genome Sciences and Information, Beijing Institute of Genomics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, Peoples Republic of China
University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, Peoples Republic of China
Abstract
Small proteins (SPs, <=100 amino acids in length) are prevalent in all prokaryotes and eukaryotes. They are known to perform varieties of relevant functions and participate in regulation of various biological processes. Although integrated studies of SPs in prokaryotes and animals have been carried out, the systematic investigation on plant SPs still remains an unwritten story. This is mainly because of the lack of sequenced whole genomes in plant, which is improving by the sequence data explosion triggered by next generation sequencing. In this study, we extract 37,003 SPs from 13 whole genome sequenced plants, including 3 green algae, 1 bryophyte, 3 monocots and 6 dicots. We mainly analysed the compositional features, conservative relations, enriched functions in different conserved groups, and the functional domain and evolution characteristics of plant SPs. We observed that the majority of SPs (64.20%) are species specific and 89.31% of these species-specific SPs do not match with any gene ontology (GO) functional annotation. It seems that organisms are likely to enrich SPs to exert specialized functions. By grouping SPs on the basis of sequence conservation within lineages, we noticed that SPs perform lineage-specific functions and many corresponding biological functions emerge with the evolution of SPs. The domains probably evolve independently in SPs while change to other cooperation patterns in the long course of evolution. In addition, gene duplication could be the primary force in the evolution of some plant SPs, for example, small nuclear ribonucleoproteins.
Pages 112-121 | Full Text PDF | Supplementary Data
.
Identification of QTLs for four physiological traits in an advanced backcross population of wheat under drought stress
Mohamed N. Barakat*, A. A. Al-Doss, K. A. Moustafa, A. A. Elshafei, A. K. Salem
Plant Production Department, College of Food and Agriculture Sciences, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Biotechnology Laboratory, Crop Science Department, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Alexandria, Egypt
Genetics and Cytology Department, National Research Centre, El-Dokki, Cairo, Egypt
Department of Field Crops Research, National Research Centre, El-Dokki, Cairo, Egypt
Abstract
Advanced backcross quantitative trait locus analysis was applied to identify QTLs for chlorophyll content, flag leaf senescence, cell membrane stability and the abscisic acid content traits under water- stressed conditions in BC2F2 wheat families. The parents and 75 BC2F2 families were evaluated phenotypically for drought tolerance using two irrigation treatments [0.25 and 0.75 m3 (H2O) m-2 (soil)]. The polymorphism among parental genotypes and 75 BC2F2 families were tested using 40, 98 and 400 different TRAP, SRAP and SSR primer combinations, respectively. Mapping analysis produced 14 QTLs, in which a single QTL explained 9- 39% of the phenotypic variation. These QTLs distributed on eight chromosomes. Four QTLs were significantly associated with chlorophyll content and distributed on four chromosomes. Three QTLs significantly influenced flag leaf senescence and mapped on chromosomes 1B, 2B and 3B. Two QTLs for cell membrane stability were identified and mapped on each chromosome of 2B and 6B. Five QTLs for abscisic acid content were identified on chromosomes 2B, 3B, 5B, 6B and 3D. All of the QTLs for the four physiological traits had a positive additive effect except for flag leaf senescence which had negative additive effects. The results also showed that the regression analysis for the relationship between the TRAP, SRAP and SSR markers and the phenotypes of BC2F2 families for the four physiological traits was highly significant. Therefore, the TRAP, SRAP and SSR markers linked to the QTL for the drought tolerance can be further used in breeding for drought tolerance in wheat.
Pages 122-129 | Full Text PDF | Supplementary Data
.
Evaluation of Na+ enrichment and expression of some carbohydrate related genes in indica rice seedlings under salt stress
Cattarin Theerawitaya, Nana Yamada, Thapanee Samphumphuang, Suriyan Cha-um*, Chalermpol Kirdmanee, Teruhiro Takabe
National Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (BIOTEC), National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA), 113 Thailand Science Park, Paholyothin Road, Khlong Nuang, Khlong Luang, Pathum Thani 12120 Thailand
International Research Center for Natural Environmental Science, Meijo University, 1-501 Shiogamagushi, Tenpaku-ku, Nagoya 468-8502, Japan
Abstract
Salt-affected soil is one of the most important abiotic stresses, leading to reduce rice productivity in many regions of the world. The objective of this investigation was to determine the Na+, soluble sugar and starch contents and expression of some starch-related genes in two genotypes, Pokkali (salt tolerant) and IR29 (salt sensitive), grown under 200 mM NaCl. Three-week-old rice seedlings cvs. Pokkali and IR29 were treated with 0 or 200 mM NaCl subsequently Na+, starch content, soluble sugar and growth characters were evaluated. The Na+ concentration in salt-stressed seedlings cv. IR29 was reached following leaf sheath>leaf blade>root tissues. Na+ accumulation in leaf blade and leaf sheath was positively related to soluble sugar enrichment (r2>0.68). In starch biosynthesis, OsAGPS2b mRNA expression in leaf blade of rice seedlings cv. Pokkali was up-regulated for 66%, when exposed to 200 mM NaCl for 48h, leading to starch accumulation. Soluble starch content in salt-stressed seedlings was peaked to 68.84 mg g-1 FW in the leaf blade of cv. Pokkali and 165.83 mg g-1 FW in leaf sheath of cv. IR29 which was confirmed by iodine dye staining. In cv. Pokkali, soluble starch in the leaf blade of salt-stressed seedlings was enhanced and correlated with Na+ gathering CoroNa green emission. Growth performances of indica rice cv. IR29 seedlings were significantly declined when subjected to salt stress for 4 d. Na+ absorption by root tissue was greater in IR29 than that in Pokkali. The starch concentration in salt-stressed seedlings of cv. Pokkali was the maximum to 68.8 mg g-1 FW in the leaf blade, and it related to up-regulated levels of OsAGPS2b mRNA and OsGPL1. The study concludes that the regulation of carbohydrate metabolism in salt tolerant cultivar of rice may play a key role as a major salt defense mechanism when seedlings subjected to 200 mM NaCl.
Pages 130-140 | Full Text PDF
.
Identification and abiotic stress analysis of calmodulin-binding transcription activator/signal responsive genes in non-heading Chinese cabbage (Brassica campestris ssp. chinensis Makino)
Rong Hu, Zhen Wang, Peng Wu, Jun Tang, Xilin Hou*
Horticultural Department, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing 210095, China
State Key Laboratory of Crop Genetics &Germplasm Enhancement, Nanjing, 210095, China
Key Laboratory of Southern Vegetable Crop Genetic Improvement, Ministry of Agriculture, Nanjing 210095, China
Abstract
In cells, calmodulin (CaM) is the most remarkable Ca2+ transducer. BcCAMTA gene family members are calmodulin-binding transcription activators, which contain new type of sequence-specific DNA-binding domain (CG-1), an ankyrin repeats and tow IQ calmodulin-binding motifs. In our study, 8 calmodulin-binding transcription activator (CAMTA) genes were identified from non-heading Chinese cabbage (Brassica campestris ssp. chinensis Makino, NHCC), and named as BcCAMTA1, BcCAMTA2.1, BcCAMTA2.2, BcCAMTA3.1, BcCAMTA3.2, BcCAMTA4, BcCAMTA5 and BcCAMTA6 through BcCAMTA genes cloning and according AtCAMTAs. Compared with the classification between Arabidopsis and Chinese cabbage, BcCAMTA family was divided into six subgroups (respectively named as BcCAMTA1-6). Subcellular localization prediction showed that most of the BcCAMTAs were located in the nucleus, except BcCAMTA2.2 and BcCAMTA6 that were located in the cytosol, indicating the different function among BcCAMTAs. The evolution and phylogenetic analysis of BcCAMTAs together with their orthologs from other species showed that CAMTA transcription factor family members duplicated in evolution of species, as well as BcCAMTAs, which showed closer evolutionary relationship with Arabidopsis and Chinese cabbage. Seedlings were exposed to four abiotic stresses including cold, drought, copper ion and nitrate stress to explore the transcriptional levels of BcCAMTA genes. The result exhibited that BcCAMTAs, except for BcCAMTA2, were up-regulated under cold stress in 4 h, among which showed the positive regulation to resist cold stress of NHCC. The expression of BcCAMTA2.1 and BcCAMTA3.2 were found significantly differential expression in five development stages of NHCC, and expressed highest in flowering stage.
Pages 141-147 | Full Text PDF | Supplementary Data
.
Transcriptome-wide identification of genes related to fatty acid biosynthesis in the medicinal plant Salvia miltiorrhiza
Jianhui Zhang*, Haimei Chen*, Kai Wu, Chang Liu
Institute of Medicinal Plant Development, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, 151 Malianwa North Road, Haidian district, Beijing100193, P.R. China
Abstract
Salvia miltiorrhiza is an important medicinal plant that is commonly used in the treatment of cardiovascular diseases and neuro-asthenic insomnia. How to increase the production of its active components is an active area of research. Since the fatty acid biosynthesis pathway is linked to the production of its active components, here we performed a systematic identification of the genes involved in fatty acid biosynthesis based on RNA-Seq data from three different types of tissues of S. miltiorrhiza. First, 76 fatty acid biosynthesis-related genes were identified based on sequence similarity to known genes, which were classified into 29 gene families. Second, multiple sequence alignment and phylogenetic analyses were performed for members of each protein family. One of these families, the Acyl Carrier Protein (ACP) family is the important cofactor protein involved in fatty acid biosynthesis, demonstrated significant variations among the sequences from different species. Third, qRT-PCR was used to validate the expression levels for 49 genes. It is found that the expression profiles obtained using qRT-PCR were consistent with those obtained from the RNA-Seq results for 36 genes (74%). Forth, hierarchical clustering analysis of the 76 genes based on their gene expression profiles across the tissues revealed eight major clusters. Last, detailed examination showed that 28 genes were significantly differentially expressed among the tissues. These tissue-specific genes might serve as the switches for the regulation of fatty acid biosynthesis in S. miltiorrhiza. In summary, the current study has identified and characterized 76 novels genes involved in the fatty acid biosynthesis pathway in S. miltiorrhiza, laying the foundation for their future detailed functional characterization.
Pages 148-158 | Full Text PDF | Supplementary Data 1 | Supplementary Data 2
.
Physiological and proteomic analysis of the response to drought stress in an inbred Korean maize line
Sang Gon Kim, Jin-Seok Lee, Jung-Tae Kim, Young Sang Kwon, Dong-Won Bae, Hwan Hee Bae1, Beom-Young Son, Seong-Bum Baek, Young-Up Kwon, Mi-Ok Woo, and Seonghyu Shin*
National Institute of Crop Science, Rural Development Administration, Suwon 441-857, South Korea
Division of Applied Life Science (BK21plus Program), Plant Molecular Biology and Biotechnology Research Center, Gyeongsang National University, Jinju 660-701, Republic of Korea
Central Instrument Facility, Gyeongsang National University, Jinju 660-701, Republic of Korea
Department of Plant Science, Seoul National University, Seoul 151-921, Republic of Korea
Abstract
Understanding the response of a crop to water deficiency is the first step towards breeding drought-tolerant varieties. In this study, inbred maize (Zea mays L.) line KS140 was subjected to drought stress by withholding water for 10 days at the V5 or V6 leaf stage. Water-deficient plants experienced a decrease in relative leaf water content, stomatal conductance, net CO2 assimilation rate, and water use efficiency compared to well-watered plants. This was accompanied by a decrease in the relative water content that resulted in severe growth retardation (75% decrease in leaf area, and 64% and 56% decrease in aerial tissue and root dry matter, respectively). Leaf chlorophyll content was unchanged. Two-dimensional electrophoresis protein expression profiles were compared between well-watered and water-deficient plants. Differential expression was observed for 29 protein spots, and these were identified using MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry. Of these proteins, 34% were involved in metabolism, 24% in response to stress, 14% in photosynthesis, 7% in protein modification, and 14% were proteins of unknown function. Of the 29 differentially expressed proteins, 24 and 5 protein spots were up- and down-regulated in water-deficient plants, respectively. Two pathogenesis-related proteins, an abscisic stress-ripening protein and heat shock protein 1, were expressed only under drought conditions. This study provides a protein profile of a Korean maize inbred line during drought stress, which will be valuable for future studies of the molecular mechanisms underlying drought resistance and for development of selective breeding markers for drought tolerance in maize.
Pages 159-168 | Full Text PDF | Supplementary Data
.
Identification and characterization of a novel abiotic stress responsive ATPase gene from rice
Shengbin Liu, Xufeng Cao, Yongrong Liao, Rongjun Chen*, Zhengjun Xu, Xiaoling Gao, Lihua Li, Jianqing Zhu
Rice Research Institute of Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu, Sichuan 611130, China
Abstract
Adenosine triphosphatases (ATPases) belonging to the AAA protein family (ATPases Associated with various cellular Activities) are involved in a wide range of abiotic stress. OsATPase, is one of the gene among these stress genes. However, the knowledge about their roles in developmental processes and response to various stimuli are still very limited in rice. In order to discover new stress tolerance genes in rice (Oryza sativa L.), expression profiles were obtained for leaf and panicle tissues at seedling, booting and heading stages of indica cultivar Peiai 64S plants under cold, drought or heat stresses using the GeneChip Rice Genome Array (Affymetrix) representing 51, 279 transcripts from japonica and indica rice. OsATPase was highly expressed in leaves and panicles and in response to cold stress in seedlings and booting stage. Real-time quantitative PCR analysis showed that the result was almost consensus with GeneChip Rice Genome Array, suggesting that OsATPase is a multiple stress responsive gene in rice. In order to study its function in stress tolerance, we cloned the cDNA of the gene through amplification by RT-PCR. Sequence analysis showed that the cDNA encodes a protein of 528 amino acid residues with M.W.60kD and pI7.8. Analysis of the putative promoter region for candidate cis-regulatory elements using Plant CARE software identified some cis-elements related to stress responses. Based on the earlier mentioned analysis and results obtained, we propose that OsATPase is a novel candidate gene involved in stress tolerance in rice.
Pages 169- 177 | Full Text PDF
.
"Type A" response regulators are involved in the plant-microbe interaction
Fariba Rafiei*, Zohreh Torabi, Esmaeil Ebrahimie
Department of Plant Breeding and Biotechnology, College of Agriculture, Shahrekord University, Shahrekord, Iran
Department of Biology, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada
Department of Crop Production and Plant Breeding, College of Agriculture, Shiraz University, Shiraz, Iran
Discipline of Genetics, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
Abstract
Plant-microbe interaction can be established as either symbiotic or pathogenic association. Regardless of any type of interaction interplayed, common strategy can be seen in the partners. Recent advances in bioinformatics and availability of abundant transcriptomics data have provided new tools for comparative analysis and achieving significant insights into underlying regulatory background of symbiosis and pathogenesis. In the present study, to find the genes which are involved in both pathogenic and symbiotic interactions, we used the microarray data pertaining bacterial interactions in M. truncatula. Those data which were publically available in NCBI analyzed using Expression Console and FlexyArray. In order to interpret gene expression patterns and investigate the relationship between co-over expressed genes, a literature survey was performed using the tools provided by Pathway Studio v9 (Elsevier). Our data analysis identified type-A response regulators (RRs) as genes that potentially respond to pathogenic and symbiotic interactions. Type-A RRs act as negative regulators of cytokinins. This study speculates that plants do not recognize bacterial pathogens from symbionts at early stage of plant-microbe interactions. Pathway analysis revealed the involvement of WUSCHEL (WUS) and SIAMES (SIM) in cross-talk between pathogen and type-A of RRs. Considering the central role of WUS and SIM in cell division, we suggest that the reduction of growth by repression of cell division is one of the adaptive responses in plants to bacterial interaction. In this way, plants try to preserve the limited energy of the mother cell and to avoid heritable damage.
Pages 178-182 | Full Text PDF | Supplementary Data
.
Identification and expression analyses of chitinase genes in mulberry (Morus L.) plants
Xuwei Wang, Ningjia He*, Qiwei Zeng, Zhonghuai Xiang
State Key Laboratory of Silkworm Genome Biology, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China
Abstract
In the present study, we identified chitinase genes in the genome of mulberry for the first time. The mulberry genome encodes 20 chitinase genes, which are grouped into two main families and organized into five classes. The genomic structures and phylogenetic relationships of mulberry chitinase genes were analyzed, which provided a genetic basis for understanding the functions of these genes. We further investigated the expression of mulberry chitinase genes in five different tissues including root, bark, bud, flower, and leaf. Our results showed that there was no correlation between the spatial expression patterns of chitinase genes and their classification based on the conserved domains. Furthermore, six mulberry chitinase genes were used to detect transcriptional differences in their response to insect wounding, fungal infection, and biochemical elicitors. We found that different mulberry chitinase genes were induced by insect wounding and fungal infection, suggesting that these chitinases help the plant to cope with the challenges from insects and fungi.
Pages 183-189 | Full Text PDF | Supplementary Data
.
Advances in research of fasciclin-like arabinogalactan proteins (FLAs) in plants
Lina Zang, Tangchun Zheng, Xiaohua Su*
State Key Laboratory of Tree Genetics and Breeding, Northeast Forestry University, Harbin, 150040, China
State Key Laboratory of Tree Genetics and Breeding, Research Institute of Forestry, Chinese Academy of Forestry, Beijing, 100091, China
Key Laboratory of Tree Breeding and Cultivation, State Forestry Administration, Beijing, 100091, China
Abstract
Fasciclin-like arabinogalactan proteins (FLAs) family, belonging to a subclass of arabinogalactan proteins (AGPs), contain AGP-like glycosylated domains and fasciclin-like domains. FLAs are widely distributed in various plants and are involved in plant growth and development. In this paper, recent advances in the structure, expression pattern, biological function and application prospect of plant FLAs are summarized.
Pages 190-194 | Full Text PDF