AUTHOR=Li Ping , Zhang Qin , Shi Baosheng , Liu Liu , Zhang Xiaoman , Wang Jia , Yi Haihui 

TITLE=Integration of genome and transcriptome reveal molecular regulation mechanism of early flowering trait in Prunus genus (Prunus mume and Prunus persica)

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Plant Science

VOLUME=13

YEAR=2022

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/plant-science/articles/10.3389/fpls.2022.1036221

DOI=10.3389/fpls.2022.1036221

ISSN=1664-462X

ABSTRACT=<p>Flowering time is crucial for the survival and reproduction. <italic>Prunus</italic> genus belongs to the Rosaceae family and includes several hundred species of flowering trees and shrubs with important ornamental and economic values. However, the molecular mechanism underlying early flowering in <italic>Prunus</italic> genus is unclear. Here, we utilized the genome and transcriptome of <italic>P. mume</italic> and <italic>P. persica</italic> to explore the transcriptional regulation mechanism of early flowering. Comparative genomics found that genes accounting for 92.4% of the total <italic>P. mume</italic> genome and 91.2% of the total <italic>P. persica</italic> genome belonged to orthogroups. A total of 19,169 orthogroups were found between <italic>P. mume</italic> and <italic>P. persica</italic>, including 20,431 corresponding orthologues and 20,080 collinearity gene pairs. A total of 305 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) associated with early flowering were found, among which <italic>FT</italic>, <italic>TLI65</italic>, and <italic>NAP57</italic> were identified as hub genes in the early flowering regulation pathway. Moreover, we identified twenty-five transcription factors (TFs) from nine protein families, including MADS-box, AP2/ERF, and MYB. Our results provide insights into the underlying molecular model of flowering time regulation in <italic>Prunus</italic> genus and highlight the utility of multi-omics in deciphering the properties of the inter-genus plants.</p>