Tobacco Research Institute of Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Qingdao 266101, China.
Int J Mol Sci. 2017 Dec 29;19(1):101. doi: 10.3390/ijms19010101.
Sprouting is a key factor affecting the quality of potato tubers. The present study aimed to compare the differential expression of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) in the apical meristem during the dormancy release and sprouting stages by using lncRNA sequencing. Microscopic observations and Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analyses revealed the changes in the morphology and expression of lncRNAs in potato tubers during sprouting. Meristematic cells of potato tuber apical buds divided continuously and exhibited vegetative cone bulging and vascularisation. In all, 3175 lncRNAs were identified from the apical buds of potato tubers, among which 383 lncRNAs were up-regulated and 340 were down-regulated during sprouting. The GO enrichment analysis revealed that sprouting mainly influenced the expression of lncRNAs related to the cellular components of potato apical buds (e.g., cytoplasm and organelles) and cellular metabolic processes. The KEGG enrichment analysis also showed significant enrichment of specific metabolic pathways. In addition, 386 differentially expressed lncRNAs during sprouting were identified as putative targets of 235 potato miRNAs. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction results agreed with the sequencing data. Our study provides the first systematic study of numerous lncRNAs involved in the potato tuber sprouting process and lays the foundation for further studies to elucidate their precise functions.
萌芽是影响马铃薯块茎质量的关键因素。本研究旨在通过长链非编码 RNA（lncRNA）测序比较休眠解除和萌芽阶段顶端分生组织中 lncRNA 的差异表达。微观观察和基因本体论（GO）和京都基因与基因组百科全书（KEGG）富集分析揭示了马铃薯块茎萌芽过程中 lncRNA 形态和表达的变化。马铃薯顶芽分生组织细胞连续分裂，表现出营养锥膨大和血管化。共从马铃薯顶芽中鉴定出 3175 个 lncRNA，其中 383 个在萌芽过程中上调，340 个下调。GO 富集分析表明，萌芽主要影响与马铃薯顶芽细胞成分（如细胞质和细胞器）和细胞代谢过程相关的 lncRNA 的表达。KEGG 富集分析也显示了特定代谢途径的显著富集。此外，在萌芽过程中鉴定出 386 个差异表达的 lncRNA 作为 235 个马铃薯 miRNA 的潜在靶标。定量实时聚合酶链反应结果与测序数据一致。本研究首次对参与马铃薯块茎萌芽过程的大量 lncRNA 进行了系统研究，为进一步阐明其精确功能奠定了基础。
