Project description:Salt responsive genes were identified in chinese willow (Salix matsudana) after the plants were treated with 100 mM NaCl. for 48 hours We used microarrays to identify genes responsible for combating salt stress. Those up-regulated during the NaCl treatment may protect the plants from damages caused by salt stress.
Project description:Salt responsive genes were identified in chinese willow (Salix matsudana) after the plants were treated with 100 mM NaCl. for 48 hours We used microarrays to identify genes responsible for combating salt stress. Those up-regulated during the NaCl treatment may protect the plants from damages caused by salt stress. 2 month-old S. matsudana plants which were treated with 100 mM NaCl and control plants were used for RNA extraction and hybridization on Affymetrix microarrays. We sought to obtain salt responsive genes that protect the plants from stress injury.Those differentially expressed genes identified by the microarray would help to understand the mechanism of S. matsudana reacting to salt stress.
Project description:Shrub willow (Salix spp.), a short rotation woody biomass crop, has superior properties as a perennial energy crop for the Northeast and Midwest US. However, the insect pest potato leafhopper Empoasca fabae (Harris) (PLH) can cause serious damage and reduce yield of susceptible genotypes. Currently, the willow cultivars in use display varying levels of susceptibility under PLH infestation. However, genes and markers for resistance to PLH are not yet available for marker-assisted selection in breeding. In this study, transcriptome differences between a resistant genotype 94006 (S. purpurea) and a susceptible cultivar ‘Jorr’ (S. viminalis), and their hybrid progeny were determined. Over 600 million RNA-Seq reads were generated and mapped to the Salix purpurea reference transcriptome. Gene expression analyses revealed the unique defense mechanism in resistant genotype 94006 that involves PLH-induced secondary cell wall modification. In the susceptible genotypes, genes involved in programed cell death were highly expressed, explaining the necrosis symptoms after potato leafhopper feeding. Overall, the discovery of resistance genes and defense mechanisms provides new resources for shrub willow breeding and research in the future.
Project description:DNA methylation plays major roles in the epigenetic regulation of gene expression, transposon and transcriptional silencing, and DNA repair, with implications in developmental processes and phenotypic plasticity. Relevantly for arboreal species, DNA methylation constitute a regulative layer in cell wall dynamics associated with xylogenesis. The use of methyltransferase and/or demethylase inhibitors has been proven informative to shed light on the methylome dynamics behind the regulation of these processes. The present work employs the cytidine analog zebularine to inhibit DNA methyltransferases and induce DNA hypomethylation in Salix purpurea plantlets grown in vitro and in soil. An integrative approach has been adopted to highlight the effects of hypomethylation on proteomic dynamics, exposing the age-specific (three weeks of in vitro culture and one month of growth in soil) and tissue-specific (shoot and root) effects following exposure to zebularine. Significant proteomic shifts were revealed in the development from in vitro to in-soil culture and, whereas zebularine treatment decreased methylation in three-weeks roots, a functionally heterogeneous subset of protein entries was differentially accumulated in shoot samples, including entries associated with cell wall dynamics, tissue morphogenesis, and hormonal regulation. The identification of tissue-specific proteomic hallmarks in combination with hypomethylating agents provides new insights into the role of DNA methylation in early plant development in willow species.
