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Transcriptomic analysis of saffron at different flowering stages using RNA sequencing uncovers cytochrome P450 genes involved in crocin biosynthesis

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Abstract

Saffron is a well-known Chinese traditional herb, and crocin biosynthesis is related to the yield and quality of saffron. This study aimed to screen differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in saffron at different flowering stages and identify cytochrome P450 (CYP) genes involved in crocin biosynthesis. Saffron samples at different flowering stages were used for RNA sequencing, and DEGs between the samples at three days before the flowering stage (− 3da) and two days after the flowering stage (+ 2da) were screened. Thereafter, significantly differentially expressed CYP genes were identified, and CYP gene expression at different flowering stages and in various tissues of saffron was determined using real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR). After sequencing and analysis, 1508 DEGs between the samples at − 3da and + 2da were identified, including 487 upregulated and 1021 downregulated genes, which were enriched in 16 biological processes, 5 cellular components, 3 molecular functions, and 11 KEGG pathways, including protein processing in endoplasmic reticulum, pentose and glucuronate interconversions, starch and sucrose metabolism, estrogen signaling pathway, and mitogen-activated protein kinase signaling pathway. In addition, 12 significantly differentially expressed CYP genes were identified. The RT-qPCR results showed that CYP76C4, CYP72A15, CYP72A219, CYP97B2, CYP714C2, CYP71A1, CYP94C1, and CYP86A8 were all expressed in the pistils, and CYP72A219, CYP72A15, CYP97B2, CYP71A1, and CYP86A8 were highly expressed in the pistils. Our study established a transcriptome library of saffron and found that CYP72A219, CYP72A15, CYP97B2, CYP71A1, and CYP86A8 may be candidates involved crocin biosynthesis in saffron.

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Data availability

The datasets generated and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

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Funding

This study was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 81703667), the Jiaxing Science and Technology Planning Project (No. 2020AY10023), the China–Iraq Saffron International Joint Research Center (No. 2017C04009), the Key Projects of International Scientific and Technological Innovation Cooperation between Governments (No. 2017YFE0130100), the Zhejiang College Students Science and Technology Innovation Project (No. 2020R417016), the Jiaxing Key Laboratory of Oncological Photodynamic Therapy and Targeted Drug Research, and the Jiaxing Sci-Tech Commissioner Project (No. 2021K117).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Medicine, Jiaxing University, Jiaxing, 314001, Zhengjiang, People’s Republic of China

    Guangchun Gao, Jiming Wu & Qi Jiang

  2. Jiaxing Vocational and Technical College, Jiaxing, 314036, Zhejiang, People’s Republic of China

    Jun Li

  3. College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Zhejiang University of Technology, Hangzhou, 310014, Zhejiang, People’s Republic of China

    Ping Wang

  4. Jiaxing Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Jiaxing, 314016, Zhejiang, People’s Republic of China

    Bai Li

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Contributions

GG and JL designed the experiments; PW, JW, BL, and QJ performed the experiments and analyzed the experimental results; GG, JL, and PW obtained the funding and supervised the experiments; GG drafted the paper; and JL revised the paper. All authors have reviewed and approved the submitted version of the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Ping Wang or Jun Li.

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Gao, G., Wu, J., Li, B. et al. Transcriptomic analysis of saffron at different flowering stages using RNA sequencing uncovers cytochrome P450 genes involved in crocin biosynthesis. Mol Biol Rep 48, 3451–3461 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11033-021-06374-1

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