Regulatory potential of soil available carbon,nitrogen,and functional genes on N_(2)O emissions in two upland plantation systems

Dynamic nitrification and denitrification processes are affected by changes in soil redox conditions,and they play a vital role in regulating soil N_(2)O emissions in rice-based cultivation.It is imperative to understand the influences of different upland crop planting systems on soil N_(2)O emissions.In this study,we focused on two representative rotation systems in Central China:rapeseed–rice(RR)and wheat–rice(WR).We examined the biotic and abiotic processes underlying the impacts of these upland plantings on soil N_(2)O emissions.The results revealed that during the rapeseed-cultivated seasons in the RR rotation system,the average N_(2)O emissions were 1.24±0.20 and 0.81±0.11 kg N ha^(–1)for the first and second seasons,respectively.These values were comparable to the N_(2)O emissions observed during the first and second wheat-cultivated seasons in the WR rotation system(0.98±0.25 and 0.70±0.04 kg N ha^(–1),respectively).This suggests that upland cultivation has minimal impacts on soil N_(2)O emissions in the two rotation systems.Strong positive correlations were found between N_(2)O fluxes and soil ammonium(NH_(4)^(+)),nitrate(NO_(3)^(–)),microbial biomass nitrogen(MBN),and the ratio of soil dissolved organic carbon(DOC)to NO_(3)^(–)in both RR and WR rotation systems.Moreover,the presence of the AOA-amoA and nirK genes were positively associated with soil N_(2)O fluxes in the RR and WR systems,respectively.This implies that these genes may have different potential roles in facilitating microbial N_(2)O production in various upland plantation models.By using a structural equation model,we found that soil moisture,mineral N,MBN,and the AOA-amoA gene accounted for over 50%of the effects on N_(2)O emissions in the RR rotation system.In the WR rotation system,soil moisture,mineral N,MBN,and the AOA-amoA and nirK genes had a combined impact of over 70%on N_(2)O emissions.These findings demonstrate the interactive effects of functional genes and soil factors,including soil physical characteristics,available carbon and nitrogen,and their ratio,on soil N_(2)O emissions during upland cultivation seasons under rice-upland rotations.

Changes in bacterial community and abundance of functional genes in paddy soil with cry1Ab transgenic rice

A field experiment involving cry1Ab transgenic rice(GM) and its parental non-cry1Ab rice(M) has been on-going since 2014. The diversity of the bacterial communities and the abundance of the microbial functional genes which drive the conversion of nitrogen in paddy soil were analyzed during the growth period of rice in the fifth year of the experiment, using 16 S rRNAbased Illumina Mi Seq and real-time PCR on the amoA, nirS and nirK genes. The results showed no differences in the alpha diversity indexes of the bacterial communities, including Chao1, Shannon and Simpson, between the fields cultivated with line GM and cultivar M at any of the growth stages of rice. However, the bacterial communities in the paddy soil with line GM were separated from those of paddy soil with cultivar M at each of the growth stages of rice, based on the unweighted Uni Frac NMDS or PCoA. In addition, the analyses of ADONIS and ANOSIM, based on the unweighted Uni Frac distance, indicated that the above separations between line GM and cultivar M were statistically significant(P<0.05) during the growth season of rice. The increases in the relative abundances of Acidobacteria or Bacteroidetes, in the paddy soils with line GM or cultivar M, respectively, led to the differences in the bacterial communities between them. At the same time, functional gene prediction based on Illumina Mi Seq data suggested that the abundance of many functional genes increased in the paddy soil with line GM at the maturity stage of rice, such as genes related to the metabolism of starch, amino acids and nitrogen. Otherwise, the copies of bacterial amo A gene, archaeal amo A gene and denitrifying bacterial nir K gene significantly increased(P<0.05 or 0.01) in the paddy soil with line GM. In summary, the release of cry1Ab transgenic rice had effects on either the composition of bacterial communities or the abundance of microbial functional genes in the paddy soil.

Geochip-based analysis of microbial functional genes diversity in rutile bio-desilication reactor

Biological desilication process is an effective way to remove silicate from rutile so that high purity rutile could be obtained. However, little is known about the molecular mechanism of this process. In this work, a newly developed rutile bio-desilication reactor was applied to enrich rutile from rough rutile concentrate obtained from Nanzhao rutile mine and a comprehensive high through-put functional gene array(Geo Chip 4.0) was used to analyze the functional gene diversity, structure and metabolic potential of microbial communities in the biological desilication reactor. The results show that TiO2 grade of the rutile concentrate could increase from 78.21% to above 90% and the recovery rate could reach to 96% or more in 8-12 d. The results also show that almost all the key functional genes involved in the geochemical cycling process, totally 4324 and 4983 functional microorganism genes, are detected in the liquid and ore surface, respectively. There are totally 712 and 831 functional genes involved in nitrogen cycling for liquid and ore surface samples, respectively. The relative abundance of functional genes involved in the phosphorus and sulfur cycling is higher in the ore surface than liquid. These results indicate that nitrogen, phosphorus and sulfur cycling are also present in the desiliconization process of rutile. Acetogenesis genes are detected in the liquid and ore surface, which indicates that the desiliconizing process mainly depends on the function of acetic acid and other organic acids. Four silicon transporting genes are also detected in the sample, which proves that the bacteria have the potential to transfer silicon in the molecule level. It is shown that bio-desilication is an effective and environmental-friendly way for enrichment of rough rutile concentrate and presents an overview of functional diversity and structure of desilication microbial communities, which also provides insights into our understanding of metabolic potential in biological desilication reactor ecosystems.

Effect of introduction of exogenous strain Leptospirillum ferriphilum YSK on functional gene expression,structure,and function of indigenous consortium during pyrite bioleaching

Leptospirillum ferriphilum YSK was added to a native consortium of bioleaching bacteria including Acidithiobacillus caldus,A.thiooxidans,A.ferrooxidans,Sulfobacillus thermosulfidooxidans,Acidiphilium spp.,and Ferroplasma thermophilum cultured in modified 9K medium containing 0.5%(W/V)pyrite.The bioleaching efficiency markedly increased.Changes in community structure and gene expression were monitored with real-time PCR and functional gene arrays.Dynamic changes that varied in different populations in the consortium occurred after the addition of L.ferriphilum YSK,with growth of A.caldus S1,A.thiooxidans A01,Acidiphillum spp.DX1-1 promoted the growth of Ferroplasma L1,inhibited that of S.thermosulfidooxidans ST,and exerted little effect on that of A.ferrooxidans CMS.Genes encoding ADP heptose,phosphoheptose isomerase,glycosyltransferase,biotin carboxylase,and protoheme ferrolyase from L.ferriphilum,acetyl-CoA carboxylase from Acidiphillum spp.,and doxD from A.caldus were up-regulated in 0-20 h.Genes encoding lipid A disaccharide synthase LpxB,glycosyl transferase,and ADP heptose synthase from A.ferrooxidans were up-regulated in 0-8 h and then down-regulated in 8-20 h.Genes encoding ferredoxin oxidoreductase from Ferroplasma sp.were up-regulated in 0-4 h,down-regulated in 4-16 h,and again up-regulated in 16-20 h.CbbS from A.ferrooxidans was down-regulated in 0-20 h.

Transformation of ammonium nitrogen and response characteristics of nitrifying functional genes in tannery sludge contaminated soil

High concentrations of ammonium nitrogen released from tannery sludge during storage in open air may cause nitrogen pollution to soil and groundwater.To study the transformation mechanism of NH_(4)^(+)-N by nitrifying functional bacteria in tannery sludge contaminated soils,a series of contaminated soil culture experiments were conducted in this study.The contents of ammonium nitrogen(as NH_(4)^(+)-N),nitrite nitrogen(as NO_(2)^(−)-N)and nitrate nitrogen(as NO_(3)^(−)-N)were analyzed during the culture period under different conditions of pollution load,soil particle and redox environment.Sigmodial equation was used to interpret the change of NO_(3)^(−)-N with time in contaminated soils.The abundance variations of nitrifying functional genes(amoA and nxrA)were also detected using the real-time quantitative fluorescence PCR method.The results show that the nitrification of NH_(4)^(+)-N was aggravated in the contaminated silt soil and fine sand under the condition of lower pollution load,finer particle size and more oxidizing environment.The sigmodial equation well fitted the dynamic accumulation curve of the NO_(3)^(−)-N content in the tannery sludge contaminated soils.The Cr(III)content increased with increasing pollution load,which inhibited the reproduction and activity of nitrifying bacteria in the soils,especially in coarse-grained soil.The accumulation of NO_(2)^(−)-N contents became more obvious with the increase of pollution load in the fine sand,and only 41.5%of the NH_(4)^(+)-N was transformed to NO_(3)^(−)-N.The redox environment was the main factor affecting nitrification process in the soil.Compared to the aerobic soil environment,the transformation of NH_(4)^(+)-N was significantly inhibited under anaerobic incubation condition,and the NO_(3)^(−)-N contents decreased by 37.2%,61.9%and 91.9%under low,medium and high pollution loads,respectively.Nitrification was stronger in the silt soil since its copy number of amoA and nxrA genes was two times larger than that of fine sand.Moreover,the copy numbers of amoA and nxrA genes in the silt soil under the aerobic environment were 2.7 times and 2.2 times larger than those in the anaerobic environment.The abundance changes of the amoA and nxrA functional genes have a positive correlation with the nitrification intensity in the tannery sludge-contaminated soil.

Metagenomic insights into responses of microbial population and key functional genes to fulvic acid during partial nitritation

The long-term impact of fulvic acid(FA)on partial nitritation(PN)systemwas initially examined in this study.The obtained results revealed that the FA lower than 50 mg/L had negligible effect on the nitrite accumulation rate(NAR nearly 100%)and ammonium removal rate(ARR 56.85%),while FA over 50 mg/L decreased ARR from 56.85%to 0.7%.Sludge characteristics analysis found that appropriate FA(<50 mg/L)exposure promoted the settling performance and granulation of PN sludge by removing Bacteroidetes and accumulating Chloroflexi.The analysis of metagenomics suggested that the presence of limited FA(0-50 mg/L)stimulated the generation of NADH,which favors the denitrification and nitrite reduction.The negative impact of FA on the PN system could be divided into two stages.Initially,limited FA(50-120 mg/L)was decomposed by Anaerolineae to stimulate the growth and propagation of heterotrophic bacteria(Thauera).Increasing heterotrophs competed with AOB(Nitrosomonas)for dissolved oxygen,causing AOB to be eliminated and ARR to declined.Subsequently,when FA dosage was over 120 mg/L,Anaerolineae were inhibited and heterotrophic bacteria reduced,resulting in the abundance of AOB recovered.Nevertheless,the ammonium transformation pathway was suppressed because genes amoABC and hao were obviously reduced,leading to the deterioration of reactor performance.Overall,these results provide theoretical guidance for the practical application of PN for the treatment of FA-containing sewage.

Single-cell Raman and functional gene analyses reveal microbial P solubilization in agriculture waste-modified soils

Application of agricultural waste such as rapeseed meal(RM)is regarded as a sustainable way to improve soil phosphorus(P)availability by direct nutrient supply and stimulation of native phosphate‐solubilizing microorganisms(PSMs)in soils.However,exploration of the in situ microbial P solubilizing function in soils remains a challenge.Here,by applying both phenotype‐based single‐cell Raman with D_(2)O labeling(Raman‐D_(2)O)and genotype‐based high‐throughput chips targeting carbon,nitrogen and P(CNP)functional genes,the effect of RM application on microbial P solubilization in three typical farmland soils was investigated.The abundances of PSMs increased in two alkaline soils after RM application identified by single‐cell Raman D_(2)O.RM application reduced the diversity of bacterial communities and increased the abundance of a few bacteria with reported P solubilization function.Genotypic analysis indicated that RM addition generally increased the relative abundance of CNP functional genes.A correlation analysis of the abundance of active PSMs with the abundance of soil microbes or functional genes was carried out to decipher the linkage between the phenotype and genotype of PSMs.Myxococcota and C degradation genes were found to potentially contribute to the enhanced microbial P release following RM application.This work provides important new insights into the in situ function of soil PSMs.It will lead to better harnessing of agricultural waste to mobilize soil legacy P and mitigate the P crisis.

Genome-wide analysis of nuclear factor Y genes and functional investigation of watermelon ClNF-YB9 during seed development

The nuclear factor Y(NF-Y) gene family is a class of transcription factors that are widely distributed in eukaryotes and are involved in various biological processes. However, the NF-Y gene family members in watermelon, a valued and nutritious fruit, remain largely unknown and their functions have not been characterized. In the present study, 22 ClNF-Y genes in watermelon, 29 CsNF-Y genes in cucumber, and 24CmNF-Y genes in melon were identified based on the whole-genome investigation and their protein properties, gene location, gene structure, motif composition, conserved domain, and evolutionary relationship were investigated. ClNF-YB9 from watermelon and its homologs in cucumber and melon were expressed specifically in seeds. Its expression remained low in the early stages of watermelon seed development,increased at 20 days after pollination(DAP), and peaked at 45–50 DAP. Moreover, the knockout mutant Clnf-yb9 exhibited abnormal leafy cotyledon phenotype, implying its critical role during seed formation.Finally, protein interaction assays showed that ClNF-YB9 interacts with all ClNF-YCs and the ClNF-YB9-YC4 heterodimer was able to recruit a ClNF-YA7 subunit to assemble a complete NF-Y complex, which may function in seed development. This study revealed the structure and evolutionary relationships of the NF-Y gene family in Cucurbitaceae and the novel function of ClNF-YB9 in regulating seed development in watermelon.

Development of a rapid and efficient system for CR genes identification based on hairy root transformation in Brassicaceae

Many economically important crops and vegetables belonging to the cruciferous family are heavily endangered by clubroot disease caused by Plasmodiophora brassicae infection.Breeding of clubroot resistant cultivars based on mapping and cloning of resistant genes is commonly regarded as the most cost-effective and efficient way to fight against this disease.The traditional way of R gene functional validation requires stable transformation that is both time-and labor-consuming.In this study,a rapid and efficient hairy-root transgenic protocol mediated by Agrobacterium rhizogenes was developed.The transformation positive rate was over 80%in Brassica napus showed by GUS reporter gene and this transformation only took 1/6 of the time compared with stable transformation.The system was applicable to different B.napus varieties and other cruciferous crops including Brassica rapa and Brassica oleracea.In particular,two known CR genes,CRA3.7.1 and CRA8.2.4 were used respectively,as example to show that the system works well for CR gene study combined with subsequent P.brassicae infection in B.napus.Most importantly,it works both in over-expression that led to disease resistance,as well as in RNAi which led to disease susceptible phenotype.Therefore,this system can be used in batch-wise identification of CR genes,and also offered the possibility of manipulating key genes within the P.brassicae genome that could improve our knowledge on host-pathogen interaction.

Application of Transgenic Technology in Identification for Gene Function on Grasses

Perennial grasses have developed intricate mechanisms to adapt to diverse environments,enabling their resistance to various biotic and abiotic stressors.These mechanisms arise from strong natural selection that contributes to enhancing the adaptation of forage plants to various stress conditions.Methods such as antisense RNA technology,CRISPR/Cas9 screening,virus-induced gene silencing,and transgenic technology,are commonly utilized for investigating the stress response functionalities of grass genes in both warm-season and cool-season varieties.This review focuses on the functional identification of stress-resistance genes and regulatory elements in grasses.It synthesizes recent studies on mining functional genes,regulatory genes,and protein kinase-like signaling factors involved in stress responses in grasses.Additionally,the review outlines future research directions,providing theoretical support and references for further exploration of(i)molecular mechanisms underlying grass stress responses,(ii)cultivation and domestication of herbage,(iii)development of high-yield varieties resistant to stress,and(iv)mechanisms and breeding strategies for stress resistance in grasses.

Development and applications of functional gene microarrays in the analysis of the functional diversity,composition,and structure of microbial communities

Functional gene arrays(FGAs)are a special type of microarrays containing probes for key genes involved in microbial functional processes,such as biogeochemical cycling of carbon,nitrogen,sulfur,phosphorus,and metals,biodegradation of environmental contaminants,energy processing,and stress responses.GeoChips are considered as the most comprehensive FGAs.Experimentally established probe design criteria and a computational pipeline integrating sequence retrieval,probe design and verification,array construction,data analysis,and automatic update are used to develop the GeoChip technology.GeoChip has been systematically evaluated and demonstrated to be a powerful tool for rapid,specific,sensitive,and quantitative analysis of microbial communities in a high-throughput manner.Several generations of GeoChip have been developed and applied to investigate the functional diversity,composition,structure,function,and dynamics of a variety of microbial communities from different habitats,such as water,soil,marine,bioreactor,human microbiome,and extreme ecosystems.GeoChip is able to address fundamental questions related to global change,bioenergy,bioremediation,agricultural operation,land use,human health,environmental restoration,and ecological theories and to link the microbial community structure to environmental factors and ecosystem functioning.

Microbial community and functional genes in the rhizosphere of alfalfa in crude oil-contaminated soil

A rhizobox system constructed with crude oil- contaminated soil was vegetated with alfalfa （Medicago sativa L.） to evaluate the rhizosphere effects on the soil microbial population and functional structure, and to explore the potential mechanisms by which plants enhance the removal of crude oil in soil. During the 80-day experiment, 31.6% of oil was removed from the adjacent rhizosphere （AR）; this value was 27% and 53% higher than the percentage of oil removed from the far rhizosphere （FR） and from the non-rhizosphere （NR）, respectively. The populations of heterotrophic bacteria and hydrocarbon- degrading bacteria were higher in the AR and FR than in the NR. However, the removal rate of crude oil was positively correlated with the proportion of hydrocarbon- degrading bacteria in the rhizosphere. In total, 796, 731, and 379 functional genes were detected by microarray in the AR, FR, and NR, respectively. Higher proportions of functional genes related to carbon degradation and organic remediation, were found in rhizosphere soil compared with NR soil, suggesting that the rhizosphere selectively increased the abundance of these specific functional genes. The increase in water-holding capacity and decrease in pH as well as salinity of the soil all followed the order of AR 〉 FR 〉 NR. Canonical component analysis showed that salinity was the most important environmental factor influencing the microbial functional structure in the rhizosphere and that salinity was negatively correlated with the abundance of carbon and organic degradation genes.

Identification of KASP markers and putative genes for pre-harvest sprouting resistance in common wheat(Triticum aestivum L.)

Common wheat(Triticum aestivum L.)is the most important crop in the world and a typical allopolyploid with a large and complex genome.Pre-harvest sprouting(PHS)leads to a significant reduction in grain quality worldwide.PHS is a complex trait with related QTL located on different chromosomes.However,the study of markers and genes related to PHS resistance is limited especially for whitegrained wheat.Four pairs of near isogenic lines(NILs)from a white-grained wheat cross of Chara
DM5637B*8 targeting a major QTL for PHS resistance(Qphs.ccsu-3A.1)on wheat chromosme 3AL were genotyped using the 90K SNP Illumina iSelect array.Ten SNPs were identified,with a 75%-100%consistency between genotype and phenotype in the resistant or susceptible isolines.The 10 SNPs were converted to cost-effective kompetitive allele-specific PCR(KASP)markers.Screening of 48 wheat cultivars with different phenotypes of PHS identified four KASP markers with 81.3%-85.4%conformity between genotype and phenotype.Further investigation revealed that the four SNPs(BS00022245_51,Kukri_c49927_151,BS00022884_51 and BS00110550_51)corresponding to the four validated KASP markers are residing in three independent genes(TraesCS3A03G1072800,TraesCS3A03G1072400,TraesCS3A03G1071800)close to each other with a distance of 4.28-4.48 Mb to the targeted QTL.These three annotated genes have potential functions related to PHS resistance.Our study revealed that combined use of NILs and the 90K SNP chip is a powerful approach for developing KASP markers and mining functional genes in wheat.The KASP markers for PHS resistance on chromosome 3AL are useful for high-throughput evaluation and marker-assisted selection,and the three identified genes could lead to a better understanding of the genetic pathways controlling PHS.

FertilityOnline:A Straightforward Pipeline for Functional Gene Annotation and Disease Mutation Discovery

Exploring the genetic basis of human infertility is currently under intensive investigation.However,only a handful of genes have been validated in animal models as disease-causing genes in infertile men.Thus,to better understand the genetic basis of human spermatogenesis and bridge the knowledge gap between humans and other animal species,we construct the FertilityOnline,a database integrating the literature-curated functional genes during spermatogenesis into an existing spermatogenic database,SpermatogenesisOnline 1.0.Additional features,including the functional annotation and genetic variants of human genes,are also incorporated into FertilityOnline.By searching this database,users can browse the functional genes involved in spermatogenesis and instantly narrow down the number of candidates of genetic mutations underlying male infertility in a user-friendly web interface.Clinical application of this database was exampled by the identification of novel causative mutations in synaptonemal complex central element protein 1(SYCE1)and stromal antigen 3(STAG3)in azoospermic men.In conclusion,FertilityOnline is not only an integrated resource for spermatogenic genes but also a useful tool facilitating the exploration of the genetic basis of male infertility.FertilityOnline can be freely accessed at http://mcg.ustc.edu.cn/bsc/spermgenes2.0/index.html.

Literature and patent analysis of the cloning and identification of human functional genes in China

The Human Genome Project was launched at the end of the 1980s.Since then,the cloning and identification of functional genes has been a major focus of research across the world.In China too,the potentially profound impact of such studies on the life sciences and on human health was realized,and relevant studies were initiated in the 1990s.To advance China's involvement in the Human Genome Project,in the mid-1990s,Committee of Experts in Biology from National High Technology Research and Development Program of China(863 Program) proposed the "two 1%" goal.This goal envisaged China contributing 1% of the total sequencing work,and cloning and identifying 1% of the total human functional genes.Over the past 20 years,tremendous achievement has been accomplished by Chinese scientists.It is well known that scientists in China finished the 1% of sequencing work of the Human Genome Project,whereas,there is no comprehensive report about "whether China had finished cloning and identifying 1% of human functional genes".In the present study,the GenBank database at the National Center of Biotechnology Information,the PubMed search tool,and the patent database of the State Intellectual Property Office,China,were used to retrieve entries based on two screening standards:(i) Were the newly cloned and identified genes first reported by Chinese scientists?(ii) Were the Chinese scientists awarded the gene sequence patent? Entries were retrieved from the databases up to the cut-off date of 30 June 2011 and the obtained data were analyzed further.The results showed that 589 new human functional genes were first reported by Chinese scientists and 159 gene sequences were patented(http:gene.fudan.sh.cn/introduction/database/chinagene/chinagene.html).This study systematically summarizes China's contributions to human functional genomics research and answers the question "has China finished cloning and identifying 1% of human functional genes?" in the affirmative.

Research Progress on Functional Analysis of Rice WRKY Genes

Rice is a model plant for genomic study of grass species. Functional identification and definition of rice genes becomes the object of its functional genomics research. WRKY gene superfamily, one of the transcription factor gene families, was recently suggested to play important roles in plant development and stress response. In rice, the results of analyses of expression pattern and ectopic overexpressor lines also support this viewpoint, and the evidences implicate rice WRKY proteins in transcriptional reprogramming during biotic or abiotic stresses, senescence, sugar metabolites, and morphological architecture. In this paper, we review the advance in study of rice WRKY gene family and also propose unified nomenclature for rice WRKY factors to eliminate confusion.

Application of Functional Markers to Identify Genes for Bacterial Blight Resistance in Oryza rufipogon

Field resistances of nine accessions of common wild rice （Oryza rufipogon Griff.） and one rice variety （IR24） were evaluated by using nine strains of bacterial blight pathogen （Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae） from the Philippines. IR24 was highly susceptible to all the strains, and six common wild rice accessions resisted all the nine strains, with a resistance frequency of 67%. The accessions Yulin and Wanning were only susceptible to PXO280 and PXO71, respectively. The accession Gaozhou was susceptible to the three strains PXO79, PXO99 and PXO339, whereas resistant to the other six strains. It could be concluded that there is at least one resistance gene in each common wild rice accession. The functional markers of the genes xa5, xa13, Xa21 and Xa27 were used to detect the presence of these resistance genes in the nine tested wild rice accessions, and it was found that four wild rice accessions contained heterozygous xa13. Among the nine common wild rice accessions, five were homozygous for Xa27 and three homozygous for xa27, and the accession Laibin contained neither xa27 nor Xa27. In addition, there were no xa5 and Xa21 in all of these accessions.

A callus transformation system for gene functional studies in soybean

Obtaining transgenic plants is a common method for analyzing gene function. Unfortunately, stable genetic transformation is difficult to achieve, especially for plants（e.g., soybean）, which are recalcitrant to genetic transformation. Transient expression systems, such as Arabidopsis protoplast, Nicotiana leaves, and onion bulb leaves are widely used for gene functional studies. A simple method for obtaining transgenic soybean callus tissues was reported recently. We extend this system with simplified culture conditions to gene functional studies, including promoter analysis, expression and subcellular localization of the target protein, and protein-protein interaction. We also evaluate the plasticity of this system with soybean varieties, different vector constructs, and various Agrobacterium strains. The results indicated that the callus transformation system is efficient and adaptable for gene functional investigation in soybean genotype-, vector-, and Agrobacterium strain-independent modes. We demonstrated an easy set-up and practical homologous strategy for soybean gene functional studies.

Functional Investigation of a Cotton Fiber HOX Gene

Most of the plant homeodomain-containing proteins play important roles in regulating cell differentiation and organ development,and Arabidopsis GLABRA2(GL2),a member of the class IV homeodomain-Leucine zipper(HD-ZIP) proteins,is a trichome and non-root hair cell regulator.We

Transcriptome and Functional Analysis of Fiber-related Gene Expression in Cotton

Fiber cell initiation is a complex process involving many pathways,including phytohormones and components for transcriptional and posttranscriptional regulation.Here we report expression