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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Plant Sci.
Sec. Functional and Applied Plant Genomics
Volume 15 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fpls.2024.1529912
This article is part of the Research Topic Analysis of Genetic Basis of Crop Stress Resistance and Variety Improvement View all 3 articles

Identification and characteristics of differentially expressed genes under UV-B stress in Gossypium hirsutum

Provisionally accepted
Xiaolin Song Xiaolin Song Yingjie Zhu Yingjie Zhu Ying Bao Ying Bao *
  • Qufu Normal University, Qufu, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Ultraviolet B (UV-B) light is a natural component of sunlight that reaches the Earth's surface, and influences plant survival and adaptation. Elevated UV-B radiation levels can cause DNA damage, induce reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, and impair photosynthesis. Although substantial evidence confirms the effects of UV-B radiation on plant photosynthesis and absorption of secondary metabolites in response to UV-B stress, limited studies have investigated the physiological responses of upland cotton to UV-B stress. In this study, the allotetraploid crop Gossypium hirsutum was examined for changes in various physiological indices under UV-B stress. Additionally, six leaf transcriptomes were analyzed to identify differentially expressed genes (DEGs) under UV-B stress (16 kJ m-2 d-1). Gene annotation analysis revealed that the DEGs were predominantly enriched in photosynthesis and secondary metabolism. Further analysis revealed that UV-B stress impaired photosynthesis primarily by damaging photosystem II (PSII) and inhibiting electron transport, whereas G. hirsutum responded to UV-B stress by synthesizing secondary metabolites such as anthocyanins and lignin. The phenylpropanoid biosynthesis pathway, is the general pathway for anthocyanin and lignin synthesis. Genes encoding enzymes such as 4-coumarate-CoA ligase, berberine bridge enzyme-like, cinnamate 4-monooxygenase, chalcone synthase, caffeic acid 3-O-methyltransferase, scopoletin glucosyltransferase, and UDP-glucose flavonoid 3-O-glucosyltransferase exhibited significantly altered expressions, indicating that the pathway underwent systematic changes under stress conditions.Using co-expression network analysis, we identified regulatory genes of the phenylpropanoid pathway under UV-B stress. We selected GhMYB4, an anthocyanin-negative regulator of the response to UV-B stress, for verification. This study provides a valuable insight into the molecular mechanisms of G. hirsutum in response to UV-B stress.

    Keywords: Photosynthesis, UV-B stress, phenylpropanoid metabolism, Gossypium hirsutum, co-expression network, anthocyanin biosynthesis

    Received: 18 Nov 2024; Accepted: 24 Dec 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Song, Zhu and Bao. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Ying Bao, Qufu Normal University, Qufu, China

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