Mahendrakar Mahesh D, Parveda Maheshwari, Kishor P B Kavi, Srivastava Rakesh K
International Crops Research Institute for Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), Patancheru, Hyderabad, 502 324, India.
Department of Genetics, Osmania University (OU), Hyderabad, 500 007, India.
Sci Rep. 2020 Oct 6;10(1):16562. doi: 10.1038/s41598-020-73241-7.
Pearl millet is an important crop for alleviating micronutrient malnutrition through genomics-assisted breeding for grain Fe (GFeC) and Zn (GZnC) content. In this study, we identified candidate genes related to iron (Fe) and zinc (Zn) metabolism through gene expression analysis and correlated it with known QTL regions for GFeC/GZnC. From a total of 114 Fe and Zn metabolism-related genes that were selected from the related crop species, we studied 29 genes. Different developmental stages exhibited tissue and stage-specific expressions for Fe and Zn metabolism genes in parents contrasting for GFeC and GZnC. Results revealed that PglZIP, PglNRAMP and PglFER gene families were candidates for GFeC and GZnC. Ferritin-like gene, PglFER1 may be the potential candidate gene for GFeC. Promoter analysis revealed Fe and Zn deficiency, hormone, metal-responsive, and salt-regulated elements. Genomic regions underlying GFeC and GZnC were validated by annotating major QTL regions for grain Fe and Zn. Interestingly, PglZIP and PglNRAMP gene families were found common with a previously reported linkage group 7 major QTL region for GFeC and GZnC. The study provides insights into the foundation for functional dissection of different Fe and Zn metabolism genes homologs and their subsequent use in pearl millet molecular breeding programs globally.
珍珠粟是一种重要的作物,可通过基因组辅助育种提高籽粒铁(GFeC)和锌(GZnC)含量来缓解微量营养素营养不良。在本研究中,我们通过基因表达分析鉴定了与铁(Fe)和锌(Zn)代谢相关的候选基因,并将其与已知的GFeC/GZnC QTL区域相关联。从相关作物物种中筛选出的114个与Fe和Zn代谢相关的基因中,我们研究了29个基因。在GFeC和GZnC存在差异的亲本中,不同发育阶段的Fe和Zn代谢基因表现出组织和阶段特异性表达。结果表明,PglZIP、PglNRAMP和PglFER基因家族是GFeC和GZnC的候选基因。铁蛋白样基因PglFER1可能是GFeC的潜在候选基因。启动子分析揭示了铁和锌缺乏、激素、金属响应和盐调节元件。通过注释籽粒铁和锌的主要QTL区域,验证了GFeC和GZnC的基因组区域。有趣的是发现PglZIP和PglNRAMP基因家族与先前报道的7号连锁群上GFeC和GZnC的主要QTL区域相同。该研究为全球珍珠粟分子育种计划中不同铁和锌代谢基因同源物的功能剖析及其后续应用奠定了基础。