Comparative transcriptomic analysis provides insights into the development of a Salvia splendens Ker-Gawler mutant, SX919M

PLoS One. 2019 Mar 14;14(3):e0213446. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0213446. eCollection 2019.

Abstract

Salvia splendens is a perennial, ornamental herbaceous flower that is widely cultivated as a bedding plant in gardens. The development of novel S. splendens cultivars and investigating the relevant molecular mechanisms are of great significance. In this study, RNA-sequencing and real-time PCR methods were used to analyze the possible molecular mechanism of S. splendens mutant, SX919M. From the wild-type S. splendens 919CK, we firstly selected a natural mutant, SX919M, which displayed multiple branches, clustered spheroids, and radial symmetrical inflorescence with higher numbers of calyces, ovules, stamens, and perianth tubes. Further, the RNA-seq was used to identify the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in the mutant which included a total of 3568 upregulated and 3290 downregulated unigenes. We further observed that the indole alkaloid biosynthesis pathway showed the highest DEG enrichment, which was supported by a significant increase in the IAA content in mutant SX919M. In addition, we validated three DEGs, namely, CL2200.Contig2_All encoding methyl IAA esterase, CL12462.Contig1_All and CL12462.Contig2_All, which encoded strictosidine synthase, upregulated in mutant SX919M. We selected a novel S. splendens germplasm SX919M with a high ornamental value and determined that the upregulation of IAA biogenesis may be associated with its development.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Gene Expression Profiling
  • Gene Expression Regulation, Plant
  • Genes, Plant
  • Indoleacetic Acids / metabolism
  • Molecular Sequence Annotation
  • Mutation
  • Phenotype
  • Plant Breeding
  • RNA, Plant / genetics
  • Salvia / genetics*
  • Salvia / growth & development*
  • Salvia / metabolism
  • Sequence Analysis, RNA
  • Transcriptome

Substances

  • Indoleacetic Acids
  • RNA, Plant
  • indoleacetic acid

Grants and funding

This study was funded by the National Natural Science Fund Project (31100865), the Beijing Natural Science Foundation Project (6172015) and the Science Project of Beijing Park Management Center (ZX 2016025). The funders had no role in the study design, data collection analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.