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Using untargeted metabolomics for you to profile the changes inside roselle (Hibiscus sabdariffa M.) anthocyanins throughout wine beverage fermentation.
Overall, the genus Fragaria exhibits S-RNase-based gametophytic SI, and S-RNase loss occurs at the S locus of compatible germplasms. In addition, a type of SI-independent unilateral incompatibility exists between compatible and incompatible Fragaria species. Furthermore, the large introns and neighboring lncRNAs in S-RNase in Fragaria could offer clues about S-RNase expression strategies.Flowering is crucial to plant reproduction and controlled by multiple factors. However, the mechanisms underlying the regulation of flowering in perennial plants are still largely unknown. Here, we first report a super long blooming 1 (slb1) mutant of the relict tree Liriodendron chinense possessing a prolonged blooming period of more than 5 months, in contrast to the 1 month blooming period in the wild type (WT). Phenotypic characterization showed that earlier maturation of lateral shoots was caused by accelerated axillary bud fate, leading to the phenotype of continuous flowering in slb1 mutants. The transcriptional activity of genes related to hormone signaling (auxin, cytokinin, and strigolactone), nutrient availability, and oxidative stress relief further indicated active outgrowth of lateral buds in slb1 mutants. Interestingly, we discovered a unique FT splicing variant with intron retention specific to slb1 mutants, representing a potential causal mutation in the slb1 mutants. Surprisingly, most slb1 inbred offspring flowered precociously with shorter juvenility (~4 months) than that (usually 8-10 years) required in WT plants, indicating heritable variation underlying continuous flowering in slb1 mutants. This study reports an example of a perennial tree mutant that flowers continuously, providing a rare resource for both breeding and genetic research.Tea, coffee, and cocoa are the three most popular nonalcoholic beverages in the world and have extremely high economic and cultural value. The genomes of four tea plant varieties have recently been sequenced, but there is some debate regarding the characterization of a whole-genome duplication (WGD) event in tea plants. Whether the WGD in the tea plant is shared with other plants in order Ericales and how it contributed to tea plant evolution remained unanswered. Here we re-analyzed the tea plant genome and provided evidence that tea experienced only WGD event after the core-eudicot whole-genome triplication (WGT) event. click here This WGD was shared by the Polemonioids-Primuloids-Core Ericales (PPC) sections, encompassing at least 17 families in the order Ericales. In addition, our study identified eight pairs of duplicated genes in the catechins biosynthesis pathway, four pairs of duplicated genes in the theanine biosynthesis pathway, and one pair of genes in the caffeine biosynthesis pathway, which were expanded and retained following this WGD. Nearly all these gene pairs were expressed in tea plants, implying the contribution of the WGD. This study shows that in addition to the role of the recent tandem gene duplication in the accumulation of tea flavor-related genes, the WGD may have been another main factor driving the evolution of tea flavor.Strawberries are rich in polyphenols which impart health benefits when metabolized by the gut microbiome, including anti-inflammatory, neuroprotective, and antiproliferative effects. In addition, polyphenolic anthocyanins contribute to the attractive color of strawberry fruits. However, the genetic basis of polyphenol biosynthesis has not been extensively studied in strawberry. In this investigation, ripe fruits from three cultivated strawberry populations were characterized for polyphenol content using HPLC-DAD-MSn and genotyped using the iStraw35k array. GWAS and QTL analyses identified genetic loci controlling polyphenol biosynthesis. QTL were identified on four chromosomes for pelargonidin-3-O-malonylglucoside, pelargonidin-3-O-acetylglucoside, cinnamoyl glucose, and ellagic acid deoxyhexoside biosynthesis. Presence/absence of ellagic acid deoxyhexoside and pelargonidin-3-O-malonylglucoside was found to be under the control of major gene loci on LG1X2 and LG6b, respectively, on the F. × ananassa linkage maps. Interrogation of gene predictions in the F. vesca reference genome sequence identified a single candidate gene for ellagic acid deoxyhexoside biosynthesis, while seven malonyltransferase genes were identified as candidates for pelargonidin-3-O-malonylglucoside biosynthesis. Homologous malonyltransferase genes were identified in the F. × ananassa 'Camarosa' genome sequence but the candidate for ellagic acid deoxyhexoside biosynthesis was absent from the 'Camarosa' sequence. This study demonstrated that polyphenol biosynthesis in strawberry is, in some cases, under simple genetic control, supporting previous observations of the presence or absence of these compounds in strawberry fruits. It has also shed light on the mechanisms controlling polyphenol biosynthesis and enhanced the knowledge of these biosynthesis pathways in strawberry. The above findings will facilitate breeding for strawberries enriched in compounds with beneficial health effects.Organic tea is more popular than conventional tea that originates from fertilized plants. Amino acids inorganic soils constitute a substantial pool nitrogen (N) available for plants. However, the amino-acid contents in soils of tea plantations and how tea plants take up these amino acids remain largely unknown. In this study, we show that the amino-acid content in the soil of an organic tea plantation is significantly higher than that of a conventional tea plantation. Glutamate, alanine, valine, and leucine were the most abundant amino acids in the soil of this tea plantation. When 15N-glutamate was fed to tea plants, it was efficiently absorbed and significantly increased the contents of other amino acids in the roots. We cloned seven CsLHT genes encoding amino-acid transporters and found that the expression of CsLHT1, CsLHT2, and CsLHT6 in the roots significantly increased upon glutamate feeding. Moreover, the expression of CsLHT1 or CsLHT6 in a yeast amino-acid uptake-defective mutant, 22∆10α, enabled growth on media with amino acids constituting the sole N source. Amino-acid uptake assays indicated that CsLHT1 and CsLHT6 are H+-dependent high- and low-affinity amino-acid transporters, respectively. We further demonstrated that CsLHT1 and CsLHT6 are highly expressed in the roots and are localized to the plasma membrane. Moreover, overexpression of CsLHT1 and CsLHT6 in Arabidopsis significantly improved the uptake of exogenously supplied 15N-glutamate and 15N-glutamine. Taken together, our findings are consistent with the involvement of CsLHT1 and CsLHT6 in amino-acid uptake from the soil, which is particularly important for tea plants grown inorganic tea plantations.Computational tool-assisted primer design for real-time reverse transcription (RT) PCR (qPCR) analysis largely ignores the sequence similarities between sequences of homologous genes in a plant genome. It can lead to false confidence in the quality of the designed primers, which sometimes results in skipping the optimization steps for qPCR. However, the optimization of qPCR parameters plays an essential role in the efficiency, specificity, and sensitivity of each gene's primers. Here, we proposed an optimized approach to sequentially optimizing primer sequences, annealing temperatures, primer concentrations, and cDNA concentration range for each reference (and target) gene. Our approach started with a sequence-specific primer design that should be based on the single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) present in all the homologous sequences for each of the reference (and target) genes under study. By combining the efficiency calibrated and standard curve methods with the 2-ΔΔCt method, the standard cDNA concentration curve with a logarithmic scale was obtained for each primer pair for each gene. As a result, an R2 ≥ 0.9999 and the efficiency (E) = 100 ± 5% should be achieved for the best primer pair of each gene, which serve as the prerequisite for using the 2-ΔΔCt method for data analysis. We applied our newly developed approach to identify the best reference genes in different tissues and at various inflorescence developmental stages of Tripidium ravennae, an ornamental and biomass grass, and validated their utility under varying abiotic stress conditions. We also applied this approach to test the expression stability of six reference genes in soybean under biotic stress treatment with Xanthomonas axonopodis pv. glycines (Xag). Thus, these case studies demonstrated the effectiveness of our optimized protocol for qPCR analysis.Flowering is the most important event in higher plants. Compared to most fruit tree species, Chinese jujube (Ziziphus jujuba Mill.), the most important member of the large, diverse Rhamnaceae family and a leading dry fruit-producing species, has unique characteristics that include a short juvenile phase and extremely fast flower bud differentiation. However, the distinct mechanism of flowering regulation in Chinese jujube is still unclear. The morphological and cytological development period of jujube flowering was first investigated, and the crucial developmental stages were defined. Flower bud differentiation in Chinese jujube took only approximately 11-13 days, which is a distinct characteristic of perennial fruit trees. Afterward, 44 genes related to six flowering pathways were identified in the jujube genome and were found to be randomly distributed among 11 of the 12 chromosomes. Tissue-specific and spatiotemporal expression patterns showed that all these genes were expressed in the flowers. Overall, phhat members of the ZjPHY family (ZjPIF4, ZjFT, and ZjCO5) are the key factors involved in the regulatory network. These results will increase our understanding of the molecular and genetic mechanisms of flowering in Chinese jujube and provide meaningful clues for the flowering regulation of other fruit tree species.Temperature changes affect apple development and production. Phenylpropanoid metabolism and hormone signaling play a crucial role in regulating apple growth and development in response to temperature changes. Here, we found that McMYB4 is induced by treatment at 28 °C and 18 °C, and McMYB4 overexpression results in flavonol and lignin accumulation in apple leaves. Yeast one-hybrid (Y1H) assays and electrophoretic mobility shift assays (EMSAs) further revealed that McMYB4 targets the promoters of the flavonol biosynthesis genes CHS and FLS and the lignin biosynthesis genes CAD and F5H. McMYB4 expression resulted in higher levels of flavonol and lignin biosynthesis in apple during growth at 28 °C and 18 °C than during growth at 23 °C. At 28 °C and 18 °C, McMYB4 also binds to the AUX/ARF and BRI/BIN promoters to activate gene expression, resulting in acceleration of the auxin and brassinolide signaling pathways. Taken together, our results demonstrate that McMYB4 promotes flavonol biosynthesis and brassinolide signaling, which decreases ROS contents to improve plant resistance and promotes lignin biosynthesis and auxin signaling to regulate plant growth. This study suggests that McMYB4 participates in the abiotic resistance and growth of apple in response to temperature changes by regulating phenylpropanoid metabolism and hormone signaling.
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