Articles
Identifying gene networks involved in drought tolerance in Carrizo citrange: a WGCNA approach to reveal key stress-responsive hubs
Article number
1454_65
Pages
475 – 482
Language
English
Abstract
Desertification and overexploitation of water pose significant challenges to crop yield and food security for the growing world population.
Especially in citrus cultivation, water scarcity negatively affects tree growth and fruit quality.
Understanding the molecular mechanisms of drought stress tolerance in citriculture is essential for enhancing their resilience in arid conditions.
In a previous study, we investigated the transcriptional responses of Carrizo citrange (Citrus sinensis × Poncirus trifoliata) rootstock under drought stress to gain insights into the plant’s adaptive response to water stress.
To achieve this objective, one-year-old plants were exposed to a nutrient solution containing either 0 or 15% PEG-8000 for ten days.
To assess the extent of reached oxidative stress, the malonyl dialdehyde (MDA) and H2O2 contents of the leaves were quantified.
Total RNA was extracted from the leaves and sequenced on the Illumina platform and de novo assembly.
Our results indicate that Carrizo citrange exhibited a sharp transcriptomic reprogramming under PEG-induced drought stress, which accounts for high susceptibility to drought, as also suggested by increased levels of H2O2 and MDA. The system biology Weighted Gene Co-Expression Network Analysis (WGCNA) was applied to identify gene clusters (hub genes) with highly correlated expression profiles.
Gene Ontology (GO) enrichment analysis was then performed on these hub gene sets.
The comparison of the GO enrichment of DEGs from DESeq2 analysis to those of hub genes from WGCNA revealed stress-specific GO terms.
GO terms linked to abiotic stress responses and energy production were positively correlated with stress levels, while those related to cell wall biogenesis, membrane function, and signal transduction showed a negative correlation, aiding in identifying candidate drought response genes.
These results led to the identification of numerous unigenes exhibiting promising potential in the development of citrus cultivars with enhanced resilience to drought stress.
Especially in citrus cultivation, water scarcity negatively affects tree growth and fruit quality.
Understanding the molecular mechanisms of drought stress tolerance in citriculture is essential for enhancing their resilience in arid conditions.
In a previous study, we investigated the transcriptional responses of Carrizo citrange (Citrus sinensis × Poncirus trifoliata) rootstock under drought stress to gain insights into the plant’s adaptive response to water stress.
To achieve this objective, one-year-old plants were exposed to a nutrient solution containing either 0 or 15% PEG-8000 for ten days.
To assess the extent of reached oxidative stress, the malonyl dialdehyde (MDA) and H2O2 contents of the leaves were quantified.
Total RNA was extracted from the leaves and sequenced on the Illumina platform and de novo assembly.
Our results indicate that Carrizo citrange exhibited a sharp transcriptomic reprogramming under PEG-induced drought stress, which accounts for high susceptibility to drought, as also suggested by increased levels of H2O2 and MDA. The system biology Weighted Gene Co-Expression Network Analysis (WGCNA) was applied to identify gene clusters (hub genes) with highly correlated expression profiles.
Gene Ontology (GO) enrichment analysis was then performed on these hub gene sets.
The comparison of the GO enrichment of DEGs from DESeq2 analysis to those of hub genes from WGCNA revealed stress-specific GO terms.
GO terms linked to abiotic stress responses and energy production were positively correlated with stress levels, while those related to cell wall biogenesis, membrane function, and signal transduction showed a negative correlation, aiding in identifying candidate drought response genes.
These results led to the identification of numerous unigenes exhibiting promising potential in the development of citrus cultivars with enhanced resilience to drought stress.
Authors
E. Scialò, A. Sicilia, C.S. Taranto, A.R. Lo Piero
Keywords
RNA-seq, transcriptome, Citrus, rootstock, PEG
Groups involved
- Division Plant Genetic Resources, Breeding and Biotechnology
- Working Group Genetic Transformation and Gene Editing
- Working Group Horticultural Biotechnology and Breeding
- Division Ornamental Plants
- Division Vegetables, Roots and Tubers
- Division Temperate Tree Fruits
- Division Vine and Berry Fruits
- Division Horticulture for Development
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