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Journal of Integrative Agriculture
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Physiological and transcriptome analyses of Chinese cabbage in response to drought stress
Lin Chen1, Chao Li1, Jiahao Zhang 1, Zongrui Li1, Qi Zeng1, Qingguo Sun1, Xiaowu Wang2, Limin Zhao1, Lugang Zhang1, Baohua Li1#

1 State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas, College of Horticulture, Northwest A & F University, Yangling 712100, China

2 Institute of Vegetables and Flowers, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Science, Beijing 100081, China

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摘要  大白菜是重要的叶菜作物,需水量高,易受干旱胁迫。为了探索大白菜干旱响应的分子机制,我们对干旱胁迫下的大白菜耐旱品种和干旱敏感品种进行了转录组分析,揭示了核心的干旱响应基因和关键的信号通路。通过加权基因共表达网络分析(WGCNA)构建了共表达网络,并鉴定了潜在的参与耐旱性的枢纽基因。此外,我们探索了大白菜叶片脱落酸的合成与信号通路及其干旱响应。我们还发现干旱处理显著提高了抗氧化酶活性和芥子油苷的含量。这些结果大大丰富了人们对大白菜响应干旱胁迫分子机制的了解。

Abstract  Chinese cabbage is an important leafy vegetable crop with high water demand and susceptibility to drought stress. To explore the molecular mechanisms underlying the response to drought, we performed a transcriptome analysis of drought-tolerant and -sensitive Chinese cabbage genotypes under drought stress, and uncovered core drought-responsive genes and key signaling pathways. A co-expression network was constructed by a weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) and candidate hub genes involved in drought tolerance were identified. Furthermore, ABA biosynthesis and signaling pathways and their drought responses in Chinese cabbage leaves were systemically explored. We also found that drought treatment increased the antioxidant enzyme activities and glucosinolate contents significantly. These results substantially enhance our understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying drought responses in Chinese cabbage.
Keywords:  Chinese cabbage              Drought stress              Abscisic acid              Weighted gene co-expression network analysis              Glucosinolate  
Online: 22 April 2024  
Fund: This work was supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China (2022YFF1003003), National Natural Science Foundation of China (32070333), and Startup Funding (Z111021922) from Northwest A&F University. We thank Dr. Fei Zhang (Horticulture Science Research Center, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, China) for technical assistance with qPCR, and Dr. Jing Zhang and Miss Jing Zhao for their assistance with HPLC analysis of glucosinolate samples. We would like to thank MogoEdit (https://www.mogoedit.com) for its English editing during the revision of this manuscript.
About author:  Lin Chen, E-mail: chenlin1995@nwafu.edu.cn; #Correspondence Baohua Li, E-mail: baohuali@nwafu.edu.cn

Cite this article: 

Lin Chen, Chao Li, Jiahao Zhang , Zongrui Li, Qi Zeng, Qingguo Sun, Xiaowu Wang, Limin Zhao, Lugang Zhang, Baohua Li. 2024. Physiological and transcriptome analyses of Chinese cabbage in response to drought stress. Journal of Integrative Agriculture, Doi:10.1016/j.jia.2024.03.067

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