Project description:The production of heather (Calluna vulgaris) in Germany is highly dependent on cultivars with mutated flower morphology, the so-called diplocalyx bud bloomers. So far, this unique flower type of C. vulgaris has not been reported in any other plant species. The flowers are characterised by an extremely extended flower attractiveness, since the flower buds remain closed throughout the complete flowering season. The flowers of C. vulgaris bud bloomers are male sterile, because the stamens are missing. Furthermore, petals are converted into sepals. Therefore the diplocalyx bud bloomer flowers consist of two whorls of sepals directly followed by the gynoecium. A broad comparison of wild type and bud bloomer’s flowers was undertaken to identify genes differentially expressed in the bud flowering phenotype and in the wild type of C. vulgaris. Transcriptome sequence reads were generated using next generation 454 sequencing of two flower type specific cDNA libraries. In total, 360,000 sequence reads were obtained, assembled to 12,200 contigs, functionally mapped, and annotated. Transcript abundances in wild type and bud bloomer’s libraries were compared and 365 differentially expressed genes detected. Among these differentially genes, CvPI was identified which is the orthologue of the Arabidopsis B gene PISTILLATA (PI) and considered as the most promising candidate gene. Quantitative PCR was performed to analyse the gene expression levels of two C. vulgaris B genes CvPI and CvAP3 in both flower types. CvAP3 which is the orthologue of the Arabidopsis B gene APETALA (AP3) turned out to be ectopically expressed in sepals of wild type and bud bloomer flowers. CvPI expression was proven to be reduced in the flowers of bud blooming cultivars. Differential expression patterns of the B-class genes CvAP3 and CvPI were identified to cause characteristics of flower morphology in C. vulgaris wild type and bud blooming flowers leading to the following hypotheses: ectopic expression of CvAP3 is a convincing explanation for the formation of a completely petaloid perianth in the wild type and the “bud flowering” phenotype. In C. vulgaris, CvPI is essential for determination of petal and stamen identity. The characteristic transition of petals into sepals potentially depends on the observed deficiency of CvPI and CvAP3 expression in bud blooming flowers. However, the complete loss of stamens in bud blooming flowers remains to be explained. two samples were analysed, each representing a flower type

Project description:Papaya (Carica papaya) is a trioecious species, with female, male, and hermaphrodite plants. Because of sex segregation, selecting hermaphroditic plants is vital for orchard establishment due to their higher commercial value. In addition to the costly sexing step, environmental stresses can result in abnormal flower development. However, molecular mechanisms that regulate sex differentiation in papaya are still poorly known. Thus, this study aimed to identify proteins associated with sex development in female and hermaphrodite flowers of papaya through comparative proteomic analysis. Proteins from flower buds at the early and late developmental stages of three papaya genotypes (UENF-CALIMAN 01, JS12, and Sunrise Solo 72/12) were studied via proteomic analysis via the combination of the shotgun method and nanoESI-HDMSE technology. In buds at an early stage of development, 496 proteins exhibited significantly different abundances between sexes for the SS72/12 genotype, 139 for the JS12 genotype, and 165 for the UC-01 genotype. At the final stage of development, there were 181 for SS72/12, 113 for JS12, and 125 for UC-01. The large group of differentially accumulated proteins (DAPs) between the sexes was related to metabolism, as shown by the observation of only the proteins that exhibited the same pattern of accumulation in the three genotypes. Specifically, carbohydrate metabolism proteins were up-regulated in hermaphrodite flower buds early in development, while those linked to monosaccharide and amino acid metabolism increased during late development. Enrichment of sporopollenin and phenylpropanoid biosynthesis pathways characterizes hermaphrodite samples across developmental stages, with predicted protein interactions highlighting the crucial role of phenylpropanoids in sporopollenin biosynthesis for pollen wall formation. Most of the DAPs played key roles in pectin, cellulose, and lignin synthesis and were essential for cell wall formation and male flower structure development, notably in the pollen coat. These findings suggest that hermaphrodite flowers require more energy for development, likely due to complex pollen wall formation. Overall, these insights illuminate the molecular mechanisms of papaya floral development, revealing complex regulatory networks and energetic demands in the formation of male reproductive structures.

Project description:The timing of flower opening is essential for pollination and thus seed production. Despite flower opening has been a long lasting topic for plant biologists, the underling molecular mechansim remains elusive. Here we used a unique cucumber line â6457â that spontaneously produces super ovary with delayed corolla opening as material, and explored the physiological, cytological, nutritional and transcriptomic reasons for the delayed corolla opening in super ovary. Our data showed that cell division and cell expansion persisited for a longer period of time in the super ovary, especially during the green yellow bud stage and yellow bud stage. Similarly, RNA-seq analyses showed that RNA and protein synthesis related genes were upregulated during these two stages, which may account for the decreased nitrogen and phosphrate content in the super ovary. Further, activation of transcription factors were delayed in the green yellow bud stage, while signalling kinases related genes were upregulated in the yellow bud stage in the super ovary. Photosynthesis related genes were also significantly activated in the super ovary, which corresponds to the increased soluble suble content. Phytohoromones such as cytokinins and gibberllins were elevated in the super ovary. Consistently, cytokinins and gibberllins related genes showed significantly enhanced expression. Therefore, both developmental and nutritional factors regulate the timing of female flower opening in cucumber, and provide a valuable foundation for dissecting the underling regulatory pathways of flower opening in planta. The normal ovary blooms at 4-5 days after labeling (when the ovary is visible) (DAL), with the majority blooms at 5 DAL, while the anthesis of super ovary occurs at 8-9 DALs, with most super ovaries blooms at 9 DAL.In the normal ovary, corolla at 1 DAL (N1), 3 DAL (N3), 4 DAL (N4), and 5 DAL (N5) is the typical stage for green bud, green yellow bud, yellow bud, and flowering, respectively, whereas in the super ovary, corolla at 1 DAL (S1) is the green bud, corolla at 3, 4 and 5 DAL (S3, S4, S5) is the green yellow bud, corolla at 7 and 8 DAL (S7, S8) is the yellow bud, and corolla at 9 DAL (S9) is the typical flowering stage.Transcriptome profiling of 11 stages include N1,N3,N4,N5,S1,S3,S4,S5,S7,S8 and S9 were performed, and each stage had 3 biological replicates.

Project description:The production of heather (Calluna vulgaris) in Germany is highly dependent on cultivars with mutated flower morphology, the so-called diplocalyx bud bloomers. So far, this unique flower type of C. vulgaris has not been reported in any other plant species. The flowers are characterised by an extremely extended flower attractiveness, since the flower buds remain closed throughout the complete flowering season. The flowers of C. vulgaris bud bloomers are male sterile, because the stamens are missing. Furthermore, petals are converted into sepals. Therefore the diplocalyx bud bloomer flowers consist of two whorls of sepals directly followed by the gynoecium. A broad comparison of wild type and bud bloomer’s flowers was undertaken to identify genes differentially expressed in the bud flowering phenotype and in the wild type of C. vulgaris. Transcriptome sequence reads were generated using next generation 454 sequencing of two flower type specific cDNA libraries. In total, 360,000 sequence reads were obtained, assembled to 12,200 contigs, functionally mapped, and annotated. Transcript abundances in wild type and bud bloomer’s libraries were compared and 365 differentially expressed genes detected. Among these differentially genes, CvPI was identified which is the orthologue of the Arabidopsis B gene PISTILLATA (PI) and considered as the most promising candidate gene. Quantitative PCR was performed to analyse the gene expression levels of two C. vulgaris B genes CvPI and CvAP3 in both flower types. CvAP3 which is the orthologue of the Arabidopsis B gene APETALA (AP3) turned out to be ectopically expressed in sepals of wild type and bud bloomer flowers. CvPI expression was proven to be reduced in the flowers of bud blooming cultivars. Differential expression patterns of the B-class genes CvAP3 and CvPI were identified to cause characteristics of flower morphology in C. vulgaris wild type and bud blooming flowers leading to the following hypotheses: ectopic expression of CvAP3 is a convincing explanation for the formation of a completely petaloid perianth in the wild type and the “bud flowering” phenotype. In C. vulgaris, CvPI is essential for determination of petal and stamen identity. The characteristic transition of petals into sepals potentially depends on the observed deficiency of CvPI and CvAP3 expression in bud blooming flowers. However, the complete loss of stamens in bud blooming flowers remains to be explained.

Dataset Information

Digital transcriptome analysis of genes on sex chromosomes in papaya (Carica papaya)

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