Plastome and transcriptome analysis reveals a degenerated photosynthesis-related pathway in the mycoheterotrophic vanilloid orchid Cyrtosia lindleyana.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Achlorophyllous mycoheterotrophic plant species demonstrate drastic evolutionary shifts in their photosynthetic machinery as encoded in their chloroplast and nuclear genomes. We used next-generation sequencing to scrutinize these genome-level alterations linked to their distinctive life history. The plastome, a partial nuclear rDNA operon gene sequence, and the transcriptome of Cyrtosia lindleyana were assembled and characterized.

Results

The plastome, despite its reduction to 89,414 base pairs, maintained its quadripartite structure. We detected 63 potentially intact genes, of which nine protein-coding genes exhibited predicted RNA-editing sites. Relative to Vanilla pompona, three genes, rpl23, rps14, and rps19, had undergone positive selection (Ka/Ks > 1), and g

SUBMITTER: Lee SY 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12220141 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature