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Expression analysis of genes associated with sucrose accumulation in sugarcane under normal and GA3-induced source–sink perturbed conditions

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Abstract

Sugarcane accumulates high amount of sucrose, thus making it one of the important cash crops worldwide. The final destination of sucrose accumulation in sugarcane is sink tissue, i.e., stalk, supplied by the source, i.e., leaf, to fulfill the need of plant growth, respiration, storage, and other metabolic activities. Signals between sink and source tissues regulate sucrose accumulation in sink and possibly the negative feedback from the sink restrains further accumulation in the stalk. However, perturbation of this negative feedback may help to improve sugar yield. This can be achieved by the application of GA3 (Gibberellic acid), a plant growth regulator, known to excite physiological responses and modify the source–sink metabolism through their effect on photosynthesis, which in turn improves sink strength by redistribution of the photoassimilates. In the present study, GA3 applied canes showed prominent increase in invertase activity, at early stage of the application, to provide hexoses. This in turn helped increase the internodal length and cane capacity for additional accumulation of sucrose, thereby increasing sink strength. At maturity, sucrose% and brix% were found higher in middle and top portions of the GA3-applied canes. Expression analysis of various sucrose metabolising genes viz., sucrose phosphate synthase (SPS), sucrose synthase (SuSy), soluble acid invertase, neutral invertase, and cell wall invertase (CWI) was carried out at different growth stages, using quantitative RT-PCR. CWI, which plays key role in phloem unloading in sink tissues, exhibited higher expression in GA3 samples at the elongation stage which decreased with maturity, whereas both SuSy and SPS, involved in regulation of sucrose accumulation, showed a variable level of expression. Thus, GA3 application on cane may improve the sucrose content in stalk and thus assuage maneuvering source–sink dynamics in sugarcane.

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Abbreviations

CWI:

Cell wall invertase

GA3 :

Gibberellic acid

NI:

Neutral invertase

SAI:

Soluble acid invertase

SPS:

Sucrose phosphate synthase

SuSy:

Sucrose synthase

qRT-PCR:

Quantitative reverse transcriptase PCR

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB/SR/SO/PS/36/2012), Department of Science and Technology, Government of India. Authors are also thankful to the Director for necessary facilities to carry out the work.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Plant Physiology and Biochemistry, ICAR-Indian Institute of Sugarcane Research, Lucknow, 226002, India

    I. Verma, K. Roopendra, A. Sharma, R. Jain, R. K. Singh & A. Chandra

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  1. I. Verma
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  2. K. Roopendra
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  3. A. Sharma
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  4. R. Jain
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  5. R. K. Singh
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Correspondence to A. Chandra.

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Communicated by O. Ferrarese-Filho.

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Verma, I., Roopendra, K., Sharma, A. et al. Expression analysis of genes associated with sucrose accumulation in sugarcane under normal and GA3-induced source–sink perturbed conditions. Acta Physiol Plant 39, 133 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11738-017-2433-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11738-017-2433-6

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