Li Li, Zhou Yujie, Wang Jingting, Qi Xiwu, Fang Hailing, Bai Yang, Chen Zequn, Yu Xu, Liu Dongmei, Liu Qun, Liang Chengyuan
Jiangsu Key Laboratory for the Research and Utilization of Plant Resources, Institute of Botany, Jiangsu Province and Chinese Academy of Sciences (Nanjing Botanical Garden Mem. Sun Yat- Sen), No. 1 Qianhu Houcun Road, Xuanwu District, Nanjing, 210014, China.
BMC Plant Biol. 2024 Dec 26;24(1):1247. doi: 10.1186/s12870-024-05944-2.
Saffron (Crocus sativus L.) is a perennial, bulbous flower whose stigma is one of the most valuable spices, herbal medicines, and dyes. Light is an essential environmental regulator of plant growth, development, and metabolism. With the popularization of customized light-emitting diode (LED) light sources in facility agriculture, accurate light control has become essential for regulating crop yield and quality. In this study, white, red, and blue LED lights were applied to extend the photoperiod at the start and end of the day during the indoor stage of saffron cultivation. We investigated saffron growth and flowering using non-target metabolomic and transcriptome analyses to determine the flux and accumulation of metabolites from the stigma under different light treatments.
The results revealed that supplemental red and white lights both promoted dry mass accumulation in the stigma, with the optimal appearance achieved using white light. Supplemental white light promoted saffron flowering, whereas supplemental blue light delayed it. Supplemental blue light promoted crocin-1 and crocin-3 accumulation, whereas supplemental red light promoted crocin-2 accumulation. Expression analysis of key genes and their correlations with crocin-related metabolites may provide useful information for screening functional genes involved in crocin synthesis.
This study provides useful information for future application of LED light to improve the planting technology, quality, and yield of saffron, and reveals underlying molecular information for the further research.
藏红花（番红花）是一种多年生球根花卉，其柱头是最有价值的香料、草药和染料之一。光是植物生长、发育和新陈代谢的重要环境调节因子。随着定制发光二极管（LED）光源在设施农业中的普及，精确的光照控制对于调节作物产量和品质至关重要。在本研究中，在藏红花室内栽培阶段，应用白色、红色和蓝色LED灯在一天开始和结束时延长光周期。我们使用非靶向代谢组学和转录组分析来研究藏红花的生长和开花情况，以确定不同光照处理下柱头中代谢物的通量和积累。
结果表明，补充红光和白光均促进了柱头干物质积累，其中白光处理下外观最佳。补充白光促进藏红花开花，而补充蓝光则延迟开花。补充蓝光促进了藏红花素-1和藏红花素-3的积累，而补充红光促进了藏红花素-2的积累。关键基因的表达分析及其与藏红花素相关代谢物的相关性可能为筛选参与藏红花素合成的功能基因提供有用信息。
本研究为未来应用LED光改善藏红花种植技术、品质和产量提供了有用信息，并揭示了进一步研究的潜在分子信息。
