Biotechnology Research Institute, The National Key Facility for Crop Gene Resources and Genetic Improvement, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China; College of Agronomy of Shihezi University, The Key Laboratory of Oasis Eco-Agriculture of Xinjiang Bingtuan, Xinjiang 832003, China.
Crop Science Research Institute, The National Key Facility for Crop Gene Resources and Genetic Improvement, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China.
Gene. 2019 Jan 10;681:86-92. doi: 10.1016/j.gene.2018.09.018. Epub 2018 Sep 22.
Maize often exhibits asynchronous pollination under abiotic and biotic stress conditions; however, the molecular basis of this developmental deficiency has not been elucidated. Tassel development is a key process affecting the anthesis-silking interval (ASI) in maize. In this study, we showed that pollen shedding was delayed and ASI was significantly increased in B73 and Chang7-2 inbred lines under water deficit conditions, which resulted in longer barren tip length and decreased yields under both controlled and field conditions. Comparative transcriptome analysis performed on immature tassels derived from plants grown under well-watered and water deficit conditions identified 1931 and 1713 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in B73 and Chang7-2, respectively. Further, 28 differentially co-expressed transcription factors were identified across both lines. Collectively, we demonstrated that the molecular regulation of tassel development is associated with water deficit stress at early vegetative stage in maize. This finding extends our understanding of the molecular basis of maize tassel development during abiotic stress.
玉米在非生物和生物胁迫条件下常表现出异步授粉；然而，这种发育缺陷的分子基础尚未阐明。雄穗发育是影响玉米开花吐丝间隔（ASI）的关键过程。在这项研究中，我们表明在水分亏缺条件下，B73 和 Chang7-2 自交系花粉散落延迟，ASI 显著增加，导致空秆顶端长度变长，在控制和田间条件下产量降低。对在充分浇水和水分亏缺条件下生长的植物衍生的未成熟雄穗进行的比较转录组分析，分别在 B73 和 Chang7-2 中鉴定出 1931 和 1713 个差异表达基因（DEGs）。此外，在两条线中都鉴定出 28 个差异共表达的转录因子。总的来说，我们证明了玉米雄穗发育的分子调控与早期营养阶段的水分亏缺胁迫有关。这一发现扩展了我们对玉米在非生物胁迫下雄穗发育的分子基础的理解。
