Preprint Article Version 1 Preserved in Portico This version is not peer-reviewed

Functional Characterization of Candidate Genes, Gohir.D05G103700 and Gohir.D12G153600, Identified Through the Expression QTL Analysis using Virus Induced Gene Silencing in Upland Cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.)

Version 1 : Received: 7 April 2023 / Approved: 7 April 2023 / Online: 7 April 2023 (05:30:25 CEST)

A peer-reviewed article of this Preprint also exists.

Naveed, S.; Rustgi, S. Functional Characterization of Candidate Genes, Gohir.D05G103700 and Gohir.D12G153600, Identified through Expression QTL Analysis Using Virus-Induced Gene Silencing in Upland Cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.). Agriculture 2023, 13, 1007. Naveed, S.; Rustgi, S. Functional Characterization of Candidate Genes, Gohir.D05G103700 and Gohir.D12G153600, Identified through Expression QTL Analysis Using Virus-Induced Gene Silencing in Upland Cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.). Agriculture 2023, 13, 1007.

Abstract

Cotton (Gossypium spp.) is a major source of natural fiber and an important cash crop. The cotton growth habit and architecture determine its productivity and influence management strategies for commercial production. The GATA transcription factors (TFs) control various developmental processes in plants, such as flower, bract and embryo development, and petal differentiation. As stable transformation is still a bottleneck in many plant species, TRV-VIGS was used to manipulate gene expression in different plants, including Gossypium hirsutum L. In this study, we undertook the TRV-based VIGS to functionally characterize two candidate genes, Gohir.D05G103700 and Gohir.D12G153600, identified through the expression QTL analysis for five floral induction and meristem identity genes using the upland cotton mini-core collection. Virus-induced silencing of the Gohir.D05G103700 gene resulted in up to a 1.4-fold reduction in the transcript level in two inoculated plants, G3 and G4, and Gohir.D12G153600 gene resulted in up to a 2.3-fold reduction in transcript level in a single inoculated plant P05 relative to the mock-treated plant. The TRV2-Gohir.D05G103700 inoculated plants precisely G3 and G4 also exhibited loss of the supernumerary (fourth) floral bract in the squares, whereas the TRV2-Gohir.D12G153600 inoculated plants did not show any observable phenotypic change relative to the mock-treated plants.  Altogether, this study suggested that TRV-VIGS can be used to characterize genes in cotton relatively rapidly and the cotton Gohir.D05G103700 gene is a positive regulator of the indeterminate growth habit in cotton, which could be manipulated to obtain a cotton plant with architecture best suited for the cultivation area.

Keywords

Cotton; virus-induced gene silencing; plant architecture; expression QTL; candidate gene

Subject

Biology and Life Sciences, Agricultural Science and Agronomy

Comments (0)

We encourage comments and feedback from a broad range of readers. See criteria for comments and our Diversity statement.

Leave a public comment
Send a private comment to the author(s)
* All users must log in before leaving a comment
Views 0
Downloads 0
Comments 0


×
Alerts
Notify me about updates to this article or when a peer-reviewed version is published.
We use cookies on our website to ensure you get the best experience.
Read more about our cookies here.