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Molecular cloning and potential function prediction of homologous SOC1 genes in tree peony

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The central flower integrator PsSOC1 was isolated and its expression profiles were analyzed; then the potential function of PsSOC1 in tree peony was postulated.

Abstract

The six flowering genes PrSOC1, PdSOC1, PsSOC1, PsSOC1-1, PsSOC1-2, and PsSOC1-3 were isolated from Paeonia rockii, Paeonia delavayi, and Paeonia suffruticosa, respectively. Sequence comparison analysis showed that the six genes were highly conserved and shared 99.41 % nucleotide identity. Further investigation suggested PsSOC1 was highly homologous to the floral integrators, SUPPRESSOR OF OVEREXPRESSION OF CONSTANS 1 (SOC1), from Arabidopsis. Phylogenetic analysis showed that the SOC1 protein clustering has family specificity and PsSOC1 has a close relationship with homologous SOC1 from Asteraceae species. The studies of PsSOC1’s expression patterns in different buds and flower buds, and vegetative organs indicated that PsSOC1 could express in both vegetative and reproductive organs. While the expression of PsSOC1 in different developmental stages of buds was different; high expression levels of PsSOC1 occurred in the bud at the bud sprouting stage and the type I aborted the flower bud. PsSOC1 expression was also shown to be affected by gibberellins (GA), low temperature, and photoperiod. One of the pathways that regulates tree peony flowering may be the GA-inductive pathway. Ectopic expression of PsSOC1 in tobacco demonstrated that greater PsSOC1 expression in the transgenic tobacco plants not only promoted plant growth, but also advanced the flowering time. Finally, the potential function of PsSOC1 in tree peony was postulated.

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Acknowledgments

Tobacco seeds (Nicotiana tabacum L. cv. Wisconis38) and the pCAMBIA2301G vector were kindly provided by Professor Mingyang Li (College of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture, Southwest University). This research was financially supported by grants from the National 863 plans projects (2011AA10020703), the Agricultural Science and Technology Innovation Program (ASTIP) of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (2014–2015), the Special Fund for Agro-scientific Research in the Public Interest (201203071), and the Foundation of Institute of Crop Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (2014JB02-001).

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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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    Authors and Affiliations

    1. Institute of Vegetables and Flowers, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Science, Beijing, 100081, China

      Shunli Wang, Jingqi Xue, Fuyong Zhu, Chuanjiao Liu & Xiuxin Zhang

    2. Regional Institute for Floriculture, Via Carducci 12, 18038, Sanremo, IM, Italy

      Margherita Beruto

    3. College of Life Science, Capital Normal University, Beijing, 100048, China

      Yueming Yan

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    1. Shunli Wang
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    2. Margherita Beruto
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    3. Jingqi Xue
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    4. Fuyong Zhu
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    7. Xiuxin Zhang
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    Correspondence to Xiuxin Zhang.

    Additional information

    Communicated by X. S. Zhang.

    S. Wang, M. Beruto, and J. Xue contributed equally to this work.

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    299_2015_1800_MOESM1_ESM.jpg

    Fig. 1 Mutliple sequence alignment of nucleotide sequences of PrSOC1, PdSOC1, PsSOC1, PsSOC1-1, PsSOC1-2 and PsSOC1-3 genes. Nucleotide variation sites and MIKC domains were highlighted in the figure. (JPEG 335 kb)

    299_2015_1800_MOESM2_ESM.jpg

    Fig. 2 The identification of positive recombinant plasmid in A. tumefaciens strain GV30101. a The separation of PsSOC1 amplification product on agarose gel. The amplification template of 1-3 was pCAMBIA2301G-PsSOC1, pCAMBIA2301G-PsSOC1, and ddH2O, respectively. b The separation of pCAMBIA2301G-PsSOC1 enzyme restriction product on agarose gel. (JPEG 29 kb)

    299_2015_1800_MOESM3_ESM.jpg

    Fig. 3 The identification of positive transgenic tobacco plants by PCR and GUS assay. a The separation of PsSOC1 amplification product on agarose gel. The amplification templates in lanes 1–5 were pCAMBIA2301G-PsSOC1, transgenic tobacco plant, transgenic tobacco plant, ddH2O, and wild type, respectively. b GUS reporter gene expressed in WT and transgenic tobacco plants. (JPEG 23 kb)

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    Wang, S., Beruto, M., Xue, J. et al. Molecular cloning and potential function prediction of homologous SOC1 genes in tree peony. Plant Cell Rep 34, 1459–1471 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00299-015-1800-2

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