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Rhee SJ, Jang YJ, Park JY, Ryu J, Lee GP. Virus-induced gene silencing for in planta validation of gene function in cucurbits. PLANT PHYSIOLOGY 2022; 190:2366-2379. [PMID: 35944218 PMCID: PMC9706489 DOI: 10.1093/plphys/kiac363] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2021] [Accepted: 07/01/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Virus-induced gene silencing (VIGS) is a powerful tool for high-throughput analysis of gene function. Here, we developed the VIGS vector pCF93, from which expression of the cucumber fruit mottle mosaic virus genome is driven by the cauliflower mosaic virus 35S promoter to produce viral transcripts in inoculated plants. To test the utility of the pCF93 vector, we identified candidate genes related to male sterility (MS) in watermelon (Citrullus lanatus), which is recalcitrant to genetic transformation. Specifically, we exploited previously reported reference-based and de novo transcriptome data to define 38 differentially expressed genes between a male-sterile line and its fertile near-isogenic line in the watermelon cultivar DAH. We amplified 200- to 300-bp fragments of these genes, cloned them into pCF93, and inoculated DAH with the resulting VIGS clones. The small watermelon cultivar DAH enabled high-throughput screening using a small cultivation area. We simultaneously characterized the phenotypes associated with each of the 38 candidate genes in plants grown in a greenhouse. Silencing of 8 of the 38 candidate genes produced male-sterile flowers with abnormal stamens and no pollen. We confirmed the extent of gene silencing in inoculated flowers using reverse transcription-qPCR. Histological analysis of stamens from male-fertile and male-sterile floral buds and mature flowers revealed developmental defects and shrunken pollen sacs. Based on these findings, we propose that the pCF93 vector and our VIGS system will facilitate high-throughput analysis for the study of gene function in watermelons.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sun-Ju Rhee
- Department of Plant Science and Technology, Chung-Ang University, Anseong, 17546, Republic of Korea
| | - Yoon Jeong Jang
- Department of Plant Science and Technology, Chung-Ang University, Anseong, 17546, Republic of Korea
| | - Jun-Young Park
- Department of Plant Science and Technology, Chung-Ang University, Anseong, 17546, Republic of Korea
| | - Jisu Ryu
- Department of Plant Science and Technology, Chung-Ang University, Anseong, 17546, Republic of Korea
| | - Gung Pyo Lee
- Department of Plant Science and Technology, Chung-Ang University, Anseong, 17546, Republic of Korea
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Wang J, Tang F, Gao C, Gao X, Xu B, Shi F. Comparative transcriptome between male fertile and male sterile alfalfa ( Medicago varia). PHYSIOLOGY AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY OF PLANTS : AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF FUNCTIONAL PLANT BIOLOGY 2021; 27:1487-1498. [PMID: 34366591 PMCID: PMC8295440 DOI: 10.1007/s12298-021-01026-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2021] [Revised: 06/14/2021] [Accepted: 06/23/2021] [Indexed: 05/05/2023]
Abstract
UNLABELLED Male sterility is an important factor in improving crop quality and yield through heterosis breeding. In this study, we analyzed the transcriptomes of male fertile (MF) and male sterile (MS) alfalfa flower buds using the Illumina HiSeq™ 4000 platform. A total of 54.05 million clean reads were generated and assembled into 65,777 unigenes with an average length of 874 bp. The differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between the MF and MS flowers at three stages of pollen development were identified, and there were 3832, 5678 and 5925 DEGs respectively in stages 1, 2 and 3. GO and KEGG functional enrichment analysis revealed 12, 12, 6 and 12 key branch-point genes involved in circadian rhythm, transcription factors, pollen development and flavonoid biosynthesis. Our findings provide novel insights into the mechanism of male sterility in alfalfa. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12298-021-01026-x.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jia Wang
- Key Laboratory of Grassland Resources, College of Grassland, Resources and Environment, Inner Mongolia Agricultural University, No.29 Erdos Street, Saihan District, Hohhot, 010011 Inner Mongolia China
- Department of Pharmacy, Baotou Medical College, Baotou, 014040 Inner Mongolia China
| | - Fang Tang
- Key Laboratory of Grassland Resources, College of Grassland, Resources and Environment, Inner Mongolia Agricultural University, No.29 Erdos Street, Saihan District, Hohhot, 010011 Inner Mongolia China
| | - Cuiping Gao
- Key Laboratory of Grassland Resources, College of Grassland, Resources and Environment, Inner Mongolia Agricultural University, No.29 Erdos Street, Saihan District, Hohhot, 010011 Inner Mongolia China
| | - Xia Gao
- Key Laboratory of Grassland Resources, College of Grassland, Resources and Environment, Inner Mongolia Agricultural University, No.29 Erdos Street, Saihan District, Hohhot, 010011 Inner Mongolia China
| | - Bo Xu
- Key Laboratory of Grassland Resources, College of Grassland, Resources and Environment, Inner Mongolia Agricultural University, No.29 Erdos Street, Saihan District, Hohhot, 010011 Inner Mongolia China
| | - Fengling Shi
- Key Laboratory of Grassland Resources, College of Grassland, Resources and Environment, Inner Mongolia Agricultural University, No.29 Erdos Street, Saihan District, Hohhot, 010011 Inner Mongolia China
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Jang YJ, Seo M, Hersh CP, Rhee SJ, Kim Y, Lee GP. An evolutionarily conserved non-synonymous SNP in a leucine-rich repeat domain determines anthracnose resistance in watermelon. TAG. THEORETICAL AND APPLIED GENETICS. THEORETISCHE UND ANGEWANDTE GENETIK 2019; 132:473-488. [PMID: 30446794 DOI: 10.1007/s00122-018-3235-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/10/2018] [Accepted: 11/07/2018] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
A non-synonymous SNP of CC-NBS-LRR was firstly mapped to confer resistance to anthracnose in watermelon. Newly proposed LRR domain harboring the SNP is evolutionary conserved in the Cucurbitaceae and Fabaceae. Anthracnose disease caused by Colletotrichum devastates many plants. Despite the importance of the disease, the mechanisms of resistance against it are poorly understood. Here, we identified a non-synonymous single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) located in a leucine-rich repeat domain as a marker for resistance to anthracnose race 1 in watermelon, using a combination of genetic analyses. We validated this SNP in segregating populations and 59 watermelon accessions using high-resolution melting assays and Sanger sequencing. We demonstrated that the resulting arginine-to-lysine substitution is particularly conserved among the Cucurbitaceae and Fabaceae. We identified a conserved motif, IxxLPxSxxxLYNLQTLxL, found in 1007 orthologues/paralogues from 89 plant species, and discovered that residue 18 of this motif could determine resistance to disease caused by external invaders. This study provides a step forward in understanding anthracnose resistance in watermelon, as well as functional and evolutionary insight into leucine-rich repeat proteins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yoon Jeong Jang
- Department of Integrative Plant Science, Chung-Ang University, Anseong, 17546, Republic of Korea
| | - Minseok Seo
- Channing Division of Network Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
- Department of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
| | - Craig P Hersh
- Channing Division of Network Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
- Department of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
| | - Sun-Ju Rhee
- Department of Plant Sciences, The University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 3EA, UK
| | - Yongjae Kim
- Partner Seeds Co., Ltd., Anseong, 17601, Republic of Korea
| | - Gung Pyo Lee
- Department of Integrative Plant Science, Chung-Ang University, Anseong, 17546, Republic of Korea.
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