Genetic mapping of paternal sorting of mitochondria in cucumber

Complete mitogenome assembly of Selenicereus monacanthus revealed its molecular features, genome evolution, and phylogenetic implications

BACKGROUND

Mitochondria are the powerhouse of the cell and are critical for plant growth and development. Pitaya (Selenicereus or Hylocereus) is the most important economic crop in the family Cactaceae and is grown worldwide, however its mitogenome is unreported.

RESULTS

This study assembled the complete mitogenome of the red skin and flesh of pitaya (Selenicereus monacanthus). It is a full-length, 2,290,019 bp circular molecule encoding 59 unique genes that only occupy 2.17% of the entire length. In addition, 4,459 pairs of dispersed repeats (≥ 50 bp) were identified, accounting for 84.78% of the total length, and three repeats (394,588, 124,827, and 13,437 bp) mediating genomic recombination were identified by long read mapping and Sanger sequencing. RNA editing events were identified in all 32 protein-coding genes (PCGs), among which four sites (nad1-2, nad4L-2, atp9-copy3-223, and ccmFC-1309) were associated with the initiation or termination of PCGs. Seventy-eight homologous fragments of the chloroplast genome were identified in the mitogenome, the longest having 4,523 bp. In addition, evolutionary analyses suggest that S. monacanthus may have undergone multiple genomic reorganization events during evolution, with the loss of at least nine PCGs (rpl2, rpl10, rps2, rps3, rps10, rps11, rps14, rps19, and sdh3).

CONCLUSIONS

This study revealed the genetic basis of the S. monacanthus mitogenome, and provided a scientific basis for further research on phenotypic traits and germplasm resource development.

Pentatricopeptide repeat 336 as the candidate gene for paternal sorting of mitochondria (Psm) in cucumber

Pentatricopeptide repeat (PPR) 336 was identified as the candidate gene for Paternal Sorting of Mitochondria ( Psm ), a nuclear locus that affects the predominant mitochondria transmitted to progenies. Cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) is a useful plant to study organellar-nuclear interactions because its organelles show differential transmission, maternal for chloroplasts and paternal for mitochondria. The mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) of cucumber is relatively large due in part to accumulation of repetitive DNAs and recombination among these repetitive regions produces structurally polymorphic mtDNAs associated with paternally transmitted mosaic (MSC) phenotypes. The mitochondrial mutant MSC16 possesses an under-representation of ribosomal protein S7 (rps7), a key component of the small ribosomal subunit in the mitochondrion. A nuclear locus, Paternal Sorting of Mitochondria (Psm), affects the predominant mitochondria transmitted to progenies generated from crosses with MSC16 as the male parent. Using single nucleotide polymorphisms, Psm was mapped to a 170 kb region on chromosome 3 of cucumber and pentatricopeptide repeat (PPR) 336 was identified as the likely candidate gene. PPR336 stabilizes mitochondrial ribosomes in Arabidopsis thaliana and because MSC16 shows reduced transcription of rps7, the cucumber homolog of PPR336 (CsPPR336) as the candidate for Psm is consistent with a nuclear effect on ribosome assembly or stability in the mitochondrion. We used polymorphisms in CsPPR336 to genotype progenies segregating at Psm and recovered only one Psm -/- plant with the MSC phenotype, indicating that the combination of the Psm- allele with mitochondria from MSC16 is almost always lethal. This research illustrates the usefulness of the MSC mutants of cucumber to reveal and study unique interactions between the mitochondrion and nucleus.

Next generation sequencing and omics in cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) breeding directed research

In the post-genomic era the availability of genomic tools and resources is leading us to novel generation methods in plant breeding, as they facilitate the study of the genotype and its relationship with the phenotype, in particular for complex traits. In this study we have mainly concentrated on the Cucumis sativus and (but much less) Cucurbitaceae family several important vegetable crops. There are many reports on research conducted in Cucurbitaceae plant breeding programs on the ripening process, phloem transport, disease resistance, cold tolerance and fruit quality traits. This paper presents the role played by new omic technologies in the creation of knowledge on the mechanisms of the formation of the breeding features. The analysis of NGS (NGS-next generation sequencing) data allows the discovery of new genes and regulatory sequences, their positions, and makes available large collections of molecular markers. Genome-wide expression studies provide breeders with an understanding of the molecular basis of complex traits. Firstly a high density map should be created for the reference genome, then each re-sequencing data could be mapped and new markers brought out into breeding populations. The paper also presents methods that could be used in the future for the creation of variability and genomic modification of the species in question. It has been shown also the state and usefulness in breeding the chloroplastomic and mitochondriomic study.