Abstract
Leymus chinensis is a perennial forage grass that has good palatability, high yield and high feed value, but seed dormancy is a major problem limiting the widespread cultivation of L. chinensis. Here, we performed transcriptomic and metabolomic analysis of hulled and de-hulled seeds of L. chinensis treated with or without GA3 to investigate the changes in gene and metabolites associated with dormancy release induced by GA3. The germination test revealed that the optimum concentration of GA3 for disruption of L. chinensis seed dormancy was 577 μM. A total of 4327 and 11,919 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and 871 and 650 differentially abundant metabolites were identified in de-hulled and hulled seeds treated with GA3, respectively, compared with seeds soaked in sterile water. Most of the DEGs were associated with starch and sucrose metabolism, protein processing in the endoplasmic reticulum, endocytosis and ribosomes. Furthermore, isoquinoline alkaloid biosynthesis, tyrosine metabolism, starch and sucrose metabolism, arginine and proline metabolism, and amino sugar and nucleotide sugar metabolism were significantly enriched pathways. Integrative analysis of the transcriptomic and metabolomic data revealed that starch and sucrose metabolism is one of the most important pathways that may play a key role in providing carbon skeletons and energy supply for the transition of L. chinensis seeds from a dormant state to germination by suppressing the expression of Cel61a, egID, cel1, tpsA, SPAC2E11.16c and TPP2, enhancing the expression of AMY1.1, AMY1.2, AMY1.6 and GLIP5, and inhibiting the synthesis of cellobiose, cellodextrin, and trehalose while promoting the hydrolysis of sucrose, starch, cellobiose, cellodextrin, and trehalose to glucose. This study identified several key genes and provided new insights into the molecular mechanism of seed dormancy release induced by GA3 in L. chinensis. These putative genes will be valuable resources for improving the seed germination rate in future breeding studies.
Highlights
IntroductionSeed dormancy is defined as the failure of an intact viable seed to complete germination under optimal conditions [1]
The total germination rate, germination index and germination potential of de-hulled seeds were higher than those of hulled seeds, and both reached their maximum values after treatment with 577 μM GA3, with the values increasing by 97.98%, 77.47% and
Transcriptomic Analysis of L. chinensis Seeds Treated with GA3
Summary
Seed dormancy is defined as the failure of an intact viable seed to complete germination under optimal conditions [1]. It is a property formed in the last stage of seed development and is an adaptation mechanism that prevents seed germination in unfavourable environments or regulates when and where the seeds germinate [2,3,4]. This dormant state helps to maintain seed vigour until germination. Understanding the mechanisms of dormancy and the methods of dormancy release, as well as regulating the transition of crop seeds from dormancy to germination, is extremely important for agricultural production [5]
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