Abstract
Dwarfism is a desirable trait in eggplant breeding, as it confers higher lodging resistance and allows simplified management and harvest. However, a few dwarf mutants have been reported, and the molecular mechanism underlying dwarfism in eggplant is completely unknown. Here, we report a dwarf mutant (dwf) isolated from an ethyl methyl sulfonate (EMS)-induced mutant library. The hypocotyl length, plant height, and length of internode cells of dwf were significantly decreased compared to those of the wild-type parent ‘14-345’ (WT). Differential gene expression analysis revealed that GA-related genes, including GA2ox and DELLA, were up-regulated whereas the gibberellin (GA3) content decreased in dwf. Moreover, exogenous GA3 treatment significantly increased the relative growth rate of dwf compared to WT, further indicating the important roles of GA in regulating the dwarf phenotype of dwf. Collectively, our findings shed light on GA-mediated dwarfism in dwf plants and offer a good germplasm that could be used for eggplant dwarfism breeding in the future.
Highlights
IntroductionPublisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations
Considering that the endogenous GA3 level in dwf was significantly decreased compared to that in wild-type parent ‘14-345’ (WT), we examined the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) involved in GA biosynthesis and signal transduction pathways
We found that the dwarf phynotype of dwf could partially restore by exogenous GA3 treatment, and that the plant height increment of dwf after GA treatment increased significantly
Summary
Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. Eggplant (Solanum melongena L.) is a vegetable crop that is cultivated worldwide and belongs to the genus Solanum in the Solanaceae family. China is the largest producer of eggplant, with 39.2 million tons and 783,000 ha in 2019 [1]. The vast majority of eggplant varieties have an indeterminate in growth habit and are not suitable for planting at high density. The production of indeterminate eggplants is labor intensive
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