AUTHOR=Wei Han-tian , Hou Dan , Ashraf Muhammad Furqan , Lu Hai-Wen , Zhuo Juan , Pei Jia-long , Qian Qi-xia 

TITLE=Metabolic Profiling and Transcriptome Analysis Reveal the Key Role of Flavonoids in Internode Coloration of Phyllostachys violascens cv. Viridisulcata

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Plant Science

VOLUME=12

YEAR=2022

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/plant-science/articles/10.3389/fpls.2021.788895

DOI=10.3389/fpls.2021.788895

ISSN=1664-462X

ABSTRACT=<p>Bamboo, being an ornamental plant, has myriad aesthetic and economic significance. Particularly, <italic>Phyllostachys violascens</italic> cv. Viridisulcata contains an internode color phenotype in variation in green and yellow color between the sulcus and culm, respectively. This color variation is unique, but the underlying regulatory mechanism is still unknown. In this study, we used metabolomic and transcriptomic strategies to reveal the underlying mechanism of variation in internode color. A total of 81 metabolites were identified, and among those, prunin as a flavanone and rhoifolin as a flavone were discovered at a high level in the culm. We also found 424 differentially expressed genes and investigated three genes (<italic>PvGL</italic>, <italic>PvUF7GT</italic>, and <italic>PvC12RT1</italic>) that might be involved in prunin or rhoifolin biosynthesis. Their validation by qRT-PCR confirmed high transcript levels in the culm. The results revealed that <italic>PvGL</italic>, <italic>PvUF7GT</italic>, and <italic>PvC12RT1</italic> might promote the accumulation of prunin and rhoifolin which were responsible for the variation in internode color of <italic>P. violascens</italic>. Our study also provides a glimpse into phenotypic coloration and is also a valuable resource for future studies.</p>