Dataset Information

Transcriptome analysis reveals major transcriptional changes during regrowth after mowing of red clover (Trifolium pratense).

ABSTRACT:

Background

Red clover (Trifolium pratense) is globally used as a fodder plant due its high nutritional value and soil improving qualities. In response to mowing, red clover exhibits specific morphological traits to compensate the loss of biomass. The morphological reaction is well described, but the underlying molecular mechanisms and its role for plants grown in the field are unclear.

Results

Here, we characterize the global transcriptional response to mowing of red clover by comparing plants grown under greenhouse conditions with plants growing on agriculturally used fields. Unexpectedly, we found that biotic and abiotic stress related changes of plants grown in the field overlay their regrowth related transcriptional changes and characterized transcription related protein families involved in these processes. Further, we can show that gibberellins, among other phytohormones, also contribute to the developmental processes related to regrowth after biomass-loss.

Conclusions

Our findings show that massive biomass loss triggers less transcriptional changes in field grown plants than their struggle with biotic and abiotic stresses and that gibberellins also play a role in the developmental program related to regrowth after mowing in red clover. Our results provide first insights into the physiological and developmental processes of mowing on red clover and may serve as a base for red clover yield improvement.

SUBMITTER: Herbert DB

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7885512 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Transcriptome analysis reveals major transcriptional changes during regrowth after mowing of red clover (Trifolium pratense).

Herbert Denise Brigitte DB Gross Thomas T Rupp Oliver O Becker Annette A

BMC plant biology 20210215 1

<h4>Background</h4>Red clover (Trifolium pratense) is globally used as a fodder plant due its high nutritional value and soil improving qualities. In response to mowing, red clover exhibits specific morphological traits to compensate the loss of biomass. The morphological reaction is well described, but the underlying molecular mechanisms and its role for plants grown in the field are unclear.<h4>Results</h4>Here, we characterize the global transcriptional response to mowing of red clover by com ...[more]

PMID: 33588756

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Project description:Red clover (Trifolium pratense L.) is an important cool-season legume plant, which is used as forage. Leaf senescence is a critical developmental process that negatively affects plant quality and yield. The regulatory mechanism of leaf senescence has been studied, and genes involved in leaf senescence have been cloned and characterized in many plants. However, those works mainly focused on model plants. Information about regulatory pathways and the genes involved in leaf senescence in red clover is very sparse. In this study, to better understand leaf senescence in red clover, transcriptome analysis of mature and senescent leaves was investigated using RNA-Seq. A total of about 35,067 genes were identified, and 481 genes were differentially expressed in mature and senescent leaves. Some identified differentially expressed genes showed similar expression patterns as those involved in leaf senescence in other species, such as Arabidopsis, Medicago truncatula and rice. Differentially expressed genes were confirmed by quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR). Genes involved in signal transduction, transportation and metabolism of plant hormones, transcription factors and plant senescence were upregulated, while the downregulated genes were primarily involved in nutrient cycling, lipid/carbohydrate metabolism, hormone response and other processes. There were 64 differentially expressed transcription factor genes identified by RNA-Seq, including ERF, WRKY, bHLH, MYB and NAC. A total of 90 genes involved in biosynthesis, metabolism and transduction of plant hormones, including abscisic acid, jasmonic acid, cyokinin, brassinosteroid, salicylic acid and ethylene, were identified. Furthermore, 207 genes with direct roles in leaf senescence were demonstrated, such as senescence-associated genes. These genes were associated with senescence in other plants. Transcriptome analysis of mature and senescent leaves in red clover provides a large number of differentially expressed genes. Further analysis and identification of senescence-associated genes can provide new insight into the regulatory mechanisms of leaf development and senescence in legume plant and red clover.

Project description:BackgroundImprovement of freezing tolerance of red clover (Trifolium pratense L.) would increase its persistence under cold climate. In this study, we assessed the freezing tolerance and compared the proteome composition of non-acclimated and cold-acclimated plants of two initial cultivars of red clover: Endure (E-TF0) and Christie (C-TF0) and of populations issued from these cultivars after three (TF3) and four (TF4) cycles of phenotypic recurrent selection for superior freezing tolerance. Through this approach, we wanted to identify proteins that are associated with the improvement of freezing tolerance in red clover.ResultsFreezing tolerance expressed as the lethal temperature for 50 % of the plants (LT50) increased markedly from approximately -2 to -16 °C following cold acclimation. Recurrent selection allowed a significant 2 to 3 °C increase of the LT50 after four cycles of recurrent selection. Two-dimensional difference gel electrophoresis (2D-DIGE) was used to study variations in protein abundance. Principal component analysis based on 2D-DIGE revealed that the largest variability in the protein data set was attributable to the cold acclimation treatment and that the two genetic backgrounds had differential protein composition in the acclimated state only. Vegetative storage proteins (VSP), which are essential nitrogen reserves for plant regrowth, and dehydrins were among the most striking changes in proteome composition of cold acclimated crowns of red clovers. A subset of proteins varied in abundance in response to selection including a dehydrin that increased in abundance in TF3 and TF4 populations as compared to TF0 in the Endure background.ConclusionRecurrent selection performed indoor is an effective approach to improve the freezing tolerance of red clover. Significant improvement of freezing tolerance by recurrent selection was associated with differential accumulation of a small number of cold-regulated proteins that may play an important role in the determination of the level of freezing tolerance.

Project description:Red clover (Trifolium pratense L.) is used as forage and contains a high level of isoflavonoids. Although isoflavonoids in red clover were discovered a long time ago, the transcriptional regulation of isoflavonoid biosynthesis is virtually unknown because of the lack of accurate and comprehensive characterization of the transcriptome. Here, we used a combination of long-read (PacBio Iso-Seq) and short-read (Illumina) RNAseq sequencing to develop a more comprehensive full-length transcriptome in four tissues (root, stem, leaf, and flower) and to identify transcription factors possibly involved in isoflavonoid biosynthesis in red clover. Overall, we obtained 50,922 isoforms, including 19,860 known genes and 2817 novel isoforms based on the annotation of RefGen Tp_v2.0. We also found 1843 long non-coding RNAs, 1625 fusion genes, and 34,612 alternatively spliced events, with some transcript isoforms validated experimentally. A total of 16,734 differentially expressed genes were identified in the four tissues, including 43 isoflavonoid-biosynthesis-related genes, such as stem-specific expressed TpPAL, TpC4H, and Tp4CL and root-specific expressed TpCHS, TpCHI1, and TpIFS. Further, weighted gene co-expression network analysis and a targeted compound assay were combined to investigate the association between the isoflavonoid content and the transcription factors expression in the four tissues. Twelve transcription factors were identified as key genes for isoflavonoid biosynthesis. Among these transcription factors, the overexpression of TpMYB30 or TpRSM1-2 significantly increased the isoflavonoid content in tobacco. In particular, the glycitin was increased by 50-100 times in the plants overexpressing TpRSM1-2, in comparison to that in the WT plants. Our study provides a comprehensive and accurate annotation of the red clover transcriptome and candidate genes to improve isoflavonoid biosynthesis and accelerate research into molecular breeding in red clover or other crops.

Project description:IntroductionRed clover (Trifolium pratense) is a protein-rich, short-lived perennial forage crop that can achieve high yields, but suffers increasingly from drought in different cultivation areas. Breeding for increased adaptation to drought is becoming essential, but at this stage it is unclear which traits breeders should target to phenotype responses to drought that allow them to identify the most promising red clover genotypes. In this study, we assessed how prolonged periods of drought affected plant growth in field conditions, and which traits could be used to distinguish better adapted plant material.MethodsA diverse panel of 395 red clover accessions was evaluated during two growing seasons. We simulated 6-to-8-week drought periods during two consecutive summers, using mobile rain-out shelters, while an irrigated control field was established in an adjacent parcel. Plant growth was monitored throughout both growing seasons using multiple flights with a drone equipped with RGB and thermal sensors. At various observation moments throughout both growing seasons, we measured canopy cover (CC) and canopy height (CH). The crop water stress index (CWSI) was determined at two moments, during or shortly after the drought event.ResultsManual and UAV-derived measurements for CH were well correlated, indicating that UAV-derived measurements can be reliably used in red clover. In both years, CC, CH and CWSI were affected by drought, with measurable growth reductions by the end of the drought periods, and during the recovery phase. We found that the end of the drought treatment and the recovery phase of approximately 20 days after drought were suitable periods to phenotype drought responses and to distinguish among genotypes.DiscussionMultifactorial analysis of accession responses revealed interactions of the maturity type with drought responses, which suggests the presence of two independent strategies in red clover: 'drought tolerance' and 'drought recovery'. We further found that a large proportion of the accessions able to perform well under well-watered conditions were also the ones that were less affected by drought. The results of this investigation are interpreted in view of the development of breeding for adaptation to drought in red clover.

Project description:The importance of Trifolium pratense L. as a dietary supplement and its use in traditional medicine prompted the preparation of a thorough metabolite profile. This included the identification and quantitation of principal constituents as well as low abundant metabolites that constitute the residual complexity (RC) of T. pratense bioactives. The purity and RC of isoflavonoid fractions from standardized red clover extract (RCE) was determined using an off-line combination of countercurrent separation (CCS) and two orthogonal analytical methodologies: quantitative 1H NMR spectroscopy with external calibration (EC-qHNMR) and LC-MS. A single-step hydrostatic CCS methodology (Centrifugal Partition Chromatography [CPC]) was developed that fractionated the isoflavonoids with a hexanes-ethyl acetate-methanol-water (HEMWat) 5.5/4.5/5/5, v/v solvent system (SS) into 75 fractions containing 3 flavonolignans, 2 isoflavonoid glycosides, as well as 17 isoflavonoids and related compounds. All metabolites were identified and quantified by qHNMR spectroscopy. The data led to the creation of a complete isoflavonoid profile to complement the biological evaluation. For example, fraction 69 afforded 90.5% w/w biochanin A (17), with 0.33% w/w of prunetin (16), and 0.76% w/w of maackiain (15) as residual components. Fraction 27 with 89.4% w/w formononetin (13) as the major component had, in addition, a residual complexity consisting of 3.37%, 0.73%, 0.68% w/w of pseudobaptigenin (11), kaempferol (10) and pratensein (8), respectively. Despite the relatively high resolving power of CPC, and not unexpectedly, the chromatographic fractions retained varying degrees of the original metabolomic diversity. Collectively, the extent of metabolomic diversity should be recognized and used to guide the development of isolation strategies, especially when generating samples for bioactivity evaluation. The simultaneous structural and quantitative characterization enabled by qNMR, supported by LC-MS measurements, enables the evaluation of a relatively large number of individual fractions and, thereby, advances both the chemical and biological evaluation of active principles in complex natural products.

Dataset Information

Transcriptome analysis reveals major transcriptional changes during regrowth after mowing of red clover (Trifolium pratense).

Background

Results

Conclusions

Publications

Transcriptome analysis reveals major transcriptional changes during regrowth after mowing of red clover (Trifolium pratense).

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