Population-scale gene expression analysis reveals the contribution of expression diversity to the modern wheat improvement.

ABSTRACT: Gene expression diversity is crucial for crop breeding, yet population genomics has focused primarily on sequence polymorphisms. A single reference genome for RNA-seq cannot handle introgression bias. Here, we conduct RNA-seq for 328 wheat lines, including landraces and elite cultivars from China and the United States, to investigate the expression variation underlying agronomic traits. Leveraging pan-genome resources, we identify 23,296 more transcripts than using the Chinese Spring reference. We construct a pan-gene regulatory atlas through eQTL analysis, revealing the tight regulation of introgressed genes. We identify 299 high-confidence candidate genes for 34 agronomic traits and resistance to 8 Blumeria graminis f. sp. tritici isolates, more than one-fifth of which were absent from t

SUBMITTER: Zhang Z 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12705824 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature