Differentially expressed genes induced by cold and UV-B in Deschampsia antarctica Desv.

Abstract

Antarctica is one of the most extreme environments on Earth. Deschampsia antarctica Desv. is the only monocot vascular plant that colonizes the Antarctic Peninsula. The survival of this species in this harsh environment suggests that this plant possesses genes associated with cold and UV tolerance. Using suppression subtractive hybridization, we identified a total of 112 differentially expressed genes under cold and UV irradiance conditions. Northern blot analysis and real-time RT-PCR confirmed expression differences among several genes. Using similarity search analysis, we identified a number of genes that have not been previously reported. The results showed that cold and UV radiation mainly induce the expression of genes related to transcription, energy and defense response. Interestingly, part of the isolated genes corresponds to unknown or hypothetical proteins. This set of tolerance-related genes could be relevant to uncover the mechanisms by which this extremophile survives in its environment and contribute to the development of biotechnology in Antarctic species.