Abstract
BackgroundSeed germination is the most important stage for the formation of a new plant. This process starts when the dry seed begins to absorb water and ends when the radicle protrudes. The germination rate of seed from different species varies. The rapid germination of seed from species that grow on marginal land allows seedlings to compete with surrounding species, which is also the guarantee of normal plant development and high yield. Pearl millet is an important cereal crop that is used worldwide, and it can also be used to extract bioethanol. Previous germination experiments have shown that pearl millet has a fast seed germination rate, but the molecular mechanisms behind pearl millet are unclear. Therefore, this study explored the expression patterns of genes involved in pearl millet growth from the germination of dry seed to the early growth stages.ResultsThrough the germination test and the measurement of the seedling radicle length, we found that pearl millet seed germinated after 24 h of swelling of the dry seed. Using transcriptome sequencing, we characterized the gene expression patterns of dry seed, water imbibed seed, germ and radicle, and found more differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in radicle than germ. Further analysis showed that different genome clusters function specifically at different tissues and time periods. Weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analysis showed that many genes that positively regulate plant growth and development are highly enriched and expressed, especially the gibberellin signaling pathway, which can promote seed germination. We speculated that the activation of these key genes promotes the germination of pearl millet seed and the growth of seedlings. To verify this, we measured the content of gibberellin and found that the gibberellin content after seed imbibition rose sharply and remained at a high level.ConclusionsIn this study, we identified the key genes that participated in the regulation of seed germination and seedling growth. The activation of key genes in these pathways may contribute to the rapid germination and growth of seed and seedlings in pearl millet. These results provided new insight into accelerating the germination rate and seedling growth of species with slow germination.
Highlights
Seed germination is the most important stage for the formation of a new plant
The germination rate and seedling growth is extremely fast in pearl millet In our studies on seed germination, we found that pearl millet seedling grew very rapidly under suitable temperature and light conditions (Fig. 1, Additional file 1: Figure S1 and Additional file 2: Table S1)
In order to determine the reasons for the rapid germination rate, we focused on five time points in the early germination period: (1) the dry seed, (2) 2 h after imbibition (HAI; still in seed form), (3) 24 HAI, (4) 36 HAI, and 48 HAI
Summary
Seed germination is the most important stage for the formation of a new plant. This process starts when the dry seed begins to absorb water and ends when the radicle protrudes. This study explored the expression patterns of genes involved in pearl millet growth from the germination of dry seed to the early growth stages. In order to avoid competition for land with crops, bioenergy crops are usually planted on marginal land where resources are very limited Plants in this environment tend to compete for sunlight, air, and water. The rapid germination of seed is very important because it can improve the ability of plants to compete with other species in the field. It is necessary to understand how rapid seed germination occurs in order to improve the scale of plant cultivation and economic benefits, as well as provide a reference accelerating germination of species with slow seed germination
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