Zhang Dan, Zhao Zhong
College of Forestry, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China.
Key Laboratory of Silviculture on the Loess Plateau State Forestry Administration, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China.
Foods. 2025 Feb 8;14(4):568. doi: 10.3390/foods14040568.
The purpose of this study was to identify the key genes regulating apricot kernel oil (AKO) biosynthesis and understand the molecular pathways of AKO synthesis and accumulation. This study used two varieties of apricot kernel to determine the oil contents and primary fatty acid compositions at different developmental stages. Candidate genes for AKO biosynthesis were selected through transcriptome sequencing technology and weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA), and these genes were verified by quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). The results indicate that during apricot ripening, the content of AKO exhibits an 'S'-shaped accumulation pattern. The primary fatty acid components are C18:1 and C18:2. The transcriptome sequencing produced 164.19 Gb of clean data and 17,411 differentially expressed genes. The WGCNA results indicate that significantly differentially expressed genes cluster into seven modules-gene clusters (module)-with the strongest correlations to AKO indicated in pink. Nineteen candidate genes were selected from the oil synthesis pathway and WGCNA results. The qRT-PCR results indicate that six key enzyme genes and three transcription factors play significant regulatory roles in AKO biosynthesis. This study elucidates the molecular pathways involved in AKO biosynthesis and explains the difference in oil content between bitter and sweet apricot kernels.
本研究的目的是鉴定调控杏仁油（AKO）生物合成的关键基因，并了解AKO合成与积累的分子途径。本研究使用了两个杏仁品种来测定不同发育阶段的油含量和主要脂肪酸组成。通过转录组测序技术和加权基因共表达网络分析（WGCNA）筛选出AKO生物合成的候选基因，并通过定量逆转录聚合酶链反应（qRT-PCR）对这些基因进行验证。结果表明，在杏成熟过程中，AKO含量呈现“S”形积累模式。主要脂肪酸成分是C18:1和C18:2。转录组测序产生了164.19 Gb的 clean数据和17411个差异表达基因。WGCNA结果表明，显著差异表达基因聚集成七个模块-基因簇（模块）-与AKO相关性最强的用粉色表示。从油脂合成途径和WGCNA结果中筛选出19个候选基因。qRT-PCR结果表明，六个关键酶基因和三个转录因子在AKO生物合成中发挥着重要的调控作用。本研究阐明了AKO生物合成所涉及的分子途径，并解释了苦杏仁和甜杏仁油含量的差异。
