College of Life Sciences, Jilin Agricultural University, Changchun 130118, China.
Joint Center for Single Cell Biology, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China.
Int J Mol Sci. 2023 Jan 5;24(2):1026. doi: 10.3390/ijms24021026.
Safflower is an important economic crop with a plethora of industrial and medicinal applications around the world. The bioactive components of safflower petals are known to have pharmacological activity that promotes blood circulation and reduces blood stasis. However, fine-tuning the genetic mechanism of flower development in safflower is still required. In this study, we report the genome-wide identification of MADS-box transcription factors in safflower and the functional characterization of a putative CtMADS24 during vegetative and reproductive growth. In total, 77 members of MADS-box-encoding genes were identified from the safflower genome. The phylogenetic analysis divided genes into two types and 15 subfamilies. Similarly, bioinformatic analysis, such as of conserved protein motifs, gene structures, and cis-regulatory elements, also revealed structural conservation of - genes in safflower. Furthermore, the differential expression pattern of genes by RNA-seq data indicated that type II genes might play important regulatory roles in floral development. Similarly, the qRT-PCR analysis also revealed the transcript abundance of 12 genes exhibiting tissue-specific expression in different flower organs. The nucleus-localized CtMADS24 of the AP1 subfamily was validated by transient transformation in tobacco using GFP translational fusion. Moreover, CtMADS24-overexpressed transgenic Arabidopsis exhibited early flowering and an abnormal phenotype, suggesting that CtMADS24 mediated the expression of genes involved in floral organ development. Taken together, these findings provide valuable information on the regulatory role of CtMADS24 during flower development in safflower and for the selection of important genes for future molecular breeding programs.
红花是一种重要的经济作物，在全球范围内具有广泛的工业和药用应用。红花花瓣中的生物活性成分具有促进血液循环和减少血瘀的药理学活性。然而，仍需要精细调控红花花发育的遗传机制。在这项研究中，我们报告了红花中 MADS 框转录因子的全基因组鉴定，以及在营养和生殖生长过程中推测的 CtMADS24 的功能特征。总共从红花基因组中鉴定出 77 个 MADS 框编码基因的成员。系统发育分析将基因分为两类和 15 个亚家族。同样，生物信息学分析，如保守蛋白基序、基因结构和顺式调控元件分析，也揭示了红花中 MADS 框基因的结构保守性。此外，RNA-seq 数据的差异表达模式表明，II 型基因可能在花发育中发挥重要的调控作用。同样，qRT-PCR 分析也表明，12 个基因在不同花器官中的组织特异性表达具有转录丰度。通过瞬时转化烟草中的 GFP 翻译融合，验证了 AP1 亚家族的核定位 CtMADS24。此外，CtMADS24 过表达的拟南芥转基因表现出早花和异常表型，表明 CtMADS24 介导了参与花器官发育的基因的表达。总之，这些发现为 CtMADS24 在红花花发育过程中的调控作用以及为未来分子育种计划选择重要基因提供了有价值的信息。
