Transcriptome sequencing and digital expression analyses of flower morphogenesis genes in Clivia miniata
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Date
2023
Authors
Naidoo, Palesa
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
University of the Free State
Abstract
Flower morphology is an important aspect in horticulture as it can be used to create new varieties, it plays an important role in pollination and it influences the visual appeal of a plant. The genus Clivia is important in horticulture due to the plant’s ornamental value, adaptability, low maintenance requirements, easy propagation and showy flowers. The genus comprises plants that exhibit two distinct flower morphologies, namely, the pendulous (drooping) and non-pendulous (upright) forms. The aims of the study were to sequence the transcriptome of the two Clivia flower shapes; identify flower morphogenesis genes and identify differentially expressed morphogenesis genes between the pendulous and non-pendulous Clivia flowers. Illumina sequencing and analyses generated a 200 MB Clivia flower transcriptome. A total of 36 flower development-related genes from the Flower Interactive database (FLOR-ID) were identified, including AGAMOUS, APETALA, SEPALLATA, PISTILATA, TERMINAL FLOWER1 and WUSCHEL. DE analysis resulted in 7,303 DEGs which were annotated using the SwissProt/Uniprot, KEGG, GO, PANTHER, Pfam, TMHMM, SignalP, EggNog and RNAmmer databases. The top three species with sequence homologies to the annotated Clivia transcriptome were Arabidopsis thaliana, Zea mays and Oryza sativa. Several transcription factors were found to be unique to each flower form, including a MADS-box gene likely to be responsible for the different morphologies. Our results contribute towards understanding the molecular mechanisms of flowering, flower development and morphogenesis in Clivia.
Description
Dissertation (M.Sc.(Genetics))--University of the Free State, 2023
Keywords
Clivia, differential expression, flower development, MADS-box, morphogenesis, next-generation sequencing, transcriptome analysis