Zhao Siyang, Ruan Chengjiang, Dmitriev Alexey A, Kim Hyun Uk
Institute of Plant Resources, Key Laboratory of Biotechnology and Bioresources Utilization, Ministry of Education, Dalian Minzu University, Dalian 116600, China.
Engelhardt Institute of Molecular Biology, Russian Academy of Sciences, 119991 Moscow, Russia.
Plants (Basel). 2025 Aug 6;14(15):2436. doi: 10.3390/plants14152436.
Sea buckthorn is a vital woody oil species valued for its role in soil conservation and its bioactive seed oil, which is rich in unsaturated fatty acids and other compounds. However, low seed oil content and small seed size are the main bottlenecks restricting the development and utilization of sea buckthorn. In this study, we tested the seed oil content and seed size of 12 sea buckthorn cultivars and identified the key genes and transcription factors involved in seed development and lipid biosynthesis via the integration of UID RNA-seq (Unique Identifiers, UID), WGCNA (weighted gene co-expression network analysis) and qRT-PCR (quantitative real-time PCR) analysis. The results revealed five cultivars (CY02, CY11, CY201309, CY18, CY21) with significantly higher oil contents and five cultivars (CY10, CY201309, CY18, CY21, CY27) with significantly heavier seeds. A total of 10,873 genes were significantly differentially expressed between the S1 and S2 seed developmental stages of the 12 cultivars. WGCNA was used to identify five modules related to seed oil content and seed weight/size, and 417 candidate genes were screened from these modules. Among them, multiple hub genes and transcription factors were identified; for instance, ATP synthase, ATP synthase subunit D and Acyl carrier protein 1 were related to seed development; plastid-lipid-associated protein, acyltransferase-like protein, and glycerol-3-phosphate 2--acyltransferase 6 were involved in lipid biosynthesis; and transcription factors , and were associated with seed enlargement and development. These findings provide crucial insights into the genetic regulation of seed traits in sea buckthorn, offering targets for future breeding efforts aimed at improving oil yield and quality.
沙棘是一种重要的木本油料树种，因其在土壤保持方面的作用以及富含不饱和脂肪酸和其他化合物的生物活性种子油而受到重视。然而，种子油含量低和种子体积小是限制沙棘开发利用的主要瓶颈。在本研究中，我们检测了12个沙棘品种的种子油含量和种子大小，并通过整合UID RNA-seq（唯一标识符，UID）、WGCNA（加权基因共表达网络分析）和qRT-PCR（定量实时PCR）分析，鉴定了参与种子发育和脂质生物合成的关键基因和转录因子。结果显示，有5个品种（CY02、CY11、CY201309、CY18、CY21）的油含量显著更高，有5个品种（CY10、CY201309、CY18、CY21、CY27）的种子显著更重。在12个品种的S1和S2种子发育阶段之间，共有10873个基因存在显著差异表达。利用WGCNA鉴定了与种子油含量和种子重量/大小相关的5个模块，并从这些模块中筛选出417个候选基因。其中，鉴定出多个枢纽基因和转录因子；例如，ATP合酶、ATP合酶亚基D和酰基载体蛋白1与种子发育相关；质体-脂质相关蛋白、酰基转移酶样蛋白和甘油-3-磷酸2-酰基转移酶6参与脂质生物合成；转录因子 、 和 与种子增大和发育相关。这些发现为沙棘种子性状的遗传调控提供了关键见解，为未来旨在提高油产量和质量的育种工作提供了靶点。
