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Special Issue "Research Advances in Ornamental Plants Breeding and Biotechnology"

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A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Plant Sciences".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 December 2023 | Viewed by 6458

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Dr. Aiping Song

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State Key Laboratory of Crop Genetics and Germplasm Enhancement, Key Laboratory of Landscaping, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, College of Horticulture, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing 210095, China
Interests: ornamental plants; bioinformatics; biotechnology; gene editing
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Dear Colleagues,

A wide variety of ornamental plants beautify people's living environment, and also have high commercial value. This has attracted a large number of breeders to invest considerable resources in acquiring new varieties. On the one hand, conventional breeding still plays an important role. But on the other hand, as more and more ornamental plant genomes ware assembled, we need to develop new biotechnologies to promote flower breeding, such as genetic transformation, genome editing, etc. Based on these, we launch this special issue “Research Advances in Ornamental Plants Breeding and Biotechnology”. This Special Issue welcomes contributions from researchers working in the field of Ornamental Plants Breeding and/or Biotechnology. Original research articles and reviews will be encouraged to submit including but not limited to the following areas:

Biotic or abiotic stress resistant gene function of ornamental plants
Delivery of genetic material
Genome editing research and application in ornamental plants
Integrative analysis of multi-omics
Molecular regulatory mechanism of ornamental traits
Ornamental plants germplasm
Ornamental plants genetics.

Dr. Aiping Song
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Molecular Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. There is an Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal. For details about the APC please see here. Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

biotechnology
breeding
genetics
genome editing
molecular mechanism
ornamental plants
stress response

Published Papers (7 papers)

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Research

Open AccessArticle

CpCAF1 from Chimonanthus praecox Promotes Flowering and Low-Temperature Tolerance When Expressed in Arabidopsis thaliana

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Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(16), 12945; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms241612945 - 18 Aug 2023

Viewed by 288

Abstract

CCR4-associated factor I (CAF1) is a deadenylase that plays a critical role in the initial step of mRNA degradation in most eukaryotic cells, and in plant growth and development. Knowledge of CAF1 proteins in woody plants remains limited. Wintersweet (Chimonanthus praecox) is a highly ornamental woody plant. In this study, CpCAF1 was isolated from wintersweet. CpCAF1 belongs to the DEDDh (Asp-Glu-Asp-Asp-His) subfamily of the DEDD (Asp-Glu-Asp-Asp) nuclease family. The amino acid sequence showed highest similarity to the homologous gene of Arabidopsis thaliana. In transgenic Arabidopsis overexpressing CpCAF1, the timing of bolting, formation of the first rosette, and other growth stages were earlier than those of the wild-type plants. Root, lateral branch, rosette leaf, and silique growth were positively correlated with CpCAF1 expression. FLOWERING LOCUS T (FT) and SUPPRESSOROF OVEREXPRESSION OF CO 1 (SOC1) gene expression was higher while EARLY FLOWERING3 (ELF3) and FLOWERING LOCUS C (FLC) gene expression of transgenic Arabidopsis was lower than the wild type grown for 4 weeks. Plant growth and flowering occurrences were earlier in transgenic Arabidopsis overexpressing CpCAF1 than in the wild-type plants. The abundance of the CpCAF1 transcript grew steadily, and significantly exceeded the initial level under 4 °C in wintersweet after initially decreasing. After low-temperature exposure, transgenic Arabidopsis had higher proline content and stronger superoxide dismutase activity than the wild type, and the malondialdehyde level in transgenic Arabidopsis was decreased significantly by 12 h and then increased in low temperature, whereas it was directly increased in the wild type. A higher potassium ion flux in the root was detected in transgenic plants than in the wild type with potassium deficiency. The CpCAF1 promoter was a constitutive promoter that contained multiple cis-acting regulatory elements. The DRE, LTR, and MYB elements, which play important roles in response to low temperature, were identified in the CpCAF1 promoter. These findings indicate that CpCAF1 is involved in flowering and low-temperature tolerance in wintersweet, and provide a basis for future genetic and breeding research on wintersweet. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Research Advances in Ornamental Plants Breeding and Biotechnology)

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Open AccessArticle

Comparative Phylogenetic Analysis for Aerides (Aeridinae, Orchidaceae) Based on Six Complete Plastid Genomes

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Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(15), 12473; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms241512473 - 05 Aug 2023

Viewed by 440

Abstract

Aerides Lour. (Orchidaceae, Aeridinae) is a group of epiphytic orchids with high ornamental value, mainly distributed in tropical and subtropical forests, that comprises approximately 20 species. The species are of great value in floriculture and garden designing because of their beautiful flower shapes and colors. Although the morphological boundaries of Aerides are clearly defined, the relationship between Aerides and other closely related genera is still ambiguous in terms of phylogeny. To better understand their phylogenetic relationships, this study used next-generation sequencing technology to investigate the phylogeny and DNA barcoding of this taxonomic unit using genetic information from six Aerides plastid genomes. The quadripartite-structure plastomes ranged from 147,244 bp to 148,391 bp and included 120 genes. Among them, 74 were protein coding genes, 38 were tRNA genes and 8 were rRNA genes, while the ndh genes were pseudogenized or lost. Four non-coding mutational hotspots (rpl20–rpl33, psbM, petB, rpoB–trnC^GCA, Pi > 0.06) were identified. A total of 71–77 SSRs and 19–46 long repeats (>30 bp) were recognized in Aerides plastomes, which were mostly located in the large single-copy region. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that Aerides was monophylic and sister to Renanthera. Moreover, our results confirmed that six Aerides species can be divided into three major clades. These findings provide assistance for species identification and DNA barcoding investigation in Aerides, as well as contributes to future research on the phylogenomics of Orchidaceae. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Research Advances in Ornamental Plants Breeding and Biotechnology)

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Open AccessArticle

IRAPs in Combination with Highly Informative ISSRs Confer Effective Potentials for Genetic Diversity and Fidelity Assessment in Rhododendron

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Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(8), 6902; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms24086902 - 07 Apr 2023

Viewed by 679

Abstract

The species belonging to the Rhododendron genus are well-known for their colorful corolla. Molecular marker systems have the potential to elucidate genetic diversity as well as to assess genetic fidelity in rhododendrons. In the present study, the reverse transcription domains of long terminal repeat retrotransposons were cloned from rhododendrons and used to develop an inter-retrotransposon amplified polymorphism (IRAP) marker system. Subsequently, 198 polymorphic loci were generated from the IRAP and inter-simple sequence repeat (ISSR) markers, of which 119 were derived from the IRAP markers. It was shown that in rhododendrons, IRAP markers were superior to the ISSRs in some polymorphic parameters, such as the average number of polymorphic loci (14.88 versus 13.17). The combination of the IRAP and ISSR systems was more discriminative for detecting 46 rhododendron accessions than each of the systems on their own. Furthermore, IRAP markers demonstrated more efficiency in genetic fidelity detection of in-vitro-grown R. bailiense Y.P.Ma, C.Q.Zhang and D.F.Chamb, an endangered species recently recorded in Guizhzhou Province, China. The available evidence revealed the distinct properties of IRAP and ISSR markers in the rhododendron-associated applications, and highlighted the availability of highly informative ISSR and IRAP markers in the evaluation of genetic diversity and genetic fidelity of rhododendrons, which may facilitate preservation and genetic breeding of rhododendron plants. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Research Advances in Ornamental Plants Breeding and Biotechnology)

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Open AccessArticle

Genome-Wide Identification and Characterization of the GRF Gene Family in Melastoma dodecandrum

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Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(2), 1261; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms24021261 - 09 Jan 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1370

Abstract

Growth-regulating factor (GRF) is a kind of transcription factor unique to plants, playing an important role in the flowering regulation, growth, and development of plants. Melastoma dodecandrum is an important member of Melastomataceae, with ornamental, medicinal, and edible benefits. The identification of the GRF gene family in M. dodecandrum can help to improve their character of flavor and continuous flowering. The members of the GRF gene family were identified from the M. dodecandrum genome, and their bioinformatics, selective pressure, and expression patterns were analyzed. The results showed that there were 20 GRF genes in M. dodecandrum. Phylogenetic analysis showed that the 71 GRF genes from M. dodecandrum, Arabidopsis thaliana, Camellia sinensis, and Oryza sativa can be divided into three clades and six subclades. The 20 GRF genes of M. dodecandrum were distributed in twelve chromosomes and one contig. Furthermore, the gene structure and motif analysis showed that the intron and motif within each clade were very similar, but there were great differences among different clades. The promoter contained cis-acting elements related to hormone induction, stress, and growth and development. Different transcriptomic expression of MdGRFs indicated that MdGRFs may be involved in regulating the growth and development of M. dodecandrum. The results laid a foundation for further study on the function and molecular mechanism of the M. dodecandrum GRF gene family. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Research Advances in Ornamental Plants Breeding and Biotechnology)

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Open AccessArticle

Comparative Transcriptome Analysis of CCCH Family in Roles of Flower Opening and Abiotic Stress in Osmanthus fragrans

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Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2022, 23(23), 15363; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms232315363 - 06 Dec 2022

Viewed by 1012

Abstract

CCCH is a zinc finger family with a typical CCCH-type motif which performs a variety of roles in plant growth and development and responses to environmental stressors. However, the information about this family has not been reported for Osmanthus fragrans. In this study, a total of 66 CCCH predicted genes were identified from the O. fragrans genome, the majority of which had multiple CCCH motifs. The 66 OfCCCHs were found to be unevenly distributed on 21 chromosomes and were clustered into nine groups based on their phylogenetic analysis. In each group, the gene structure and domain makeup were comparatively conserved. The expression profiles of the OfCCCH genes were examined in various tissues, the flower-opening processes, and under various abiotic stresses using transcriptome sequencing and qRT-PCR (quantitative real-time PCR). The results demonstrated the widespread expression of OfCCCHs in various tissues, the differential expression of 22 OfCCCHs during flower-opening stages, and the identification of 4, 5, and 13 OfCCCHs after ABA, salt, and drought stress treatment, respectively. Furthermore, characterization of the representative OfCCCHs (OfCCCH8, 23, 27, and 36) revealed that they were all localized in the nucleus and that the majority of them had transcriptional activation in the yeast system. Our research offers the first thorough examination of the OfCCCH family and lays the groundwork for future investigations regarding the functions of CCCH genes in O. fragrans. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Research Advances in Ornamental Plants Breeding and Biotechnology)

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Open AccessArticle

Identification of Differentially Expressed Genes Related to Floral Bud Differentiation and Flowering Time in Three Populations of Lycoris radiata

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Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2022, 23(22), 14036; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms232214036 - 14 Nov 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 936

Abstract

The transition from vegetative to reproductive growth is important for controlling the flowering of Lycoris radiata. However, the genetic control of this complex developmental process remains unclear. In this study, 18 shoot apical meristem (SAM) samples were collected from early-, mid- and late-flowering populations during floral bud differentiation. The histological analysis of paraffin sections showed that the floral bud differentiation could be divided into six stages; the differentiation time of the early group was earlier than that of the middle and late groups, and the late group was the latest. In different populations, some important differential genes affecting the flowering time were identified by transcriptome profiles of floral bud differentiation samples. Weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) was performed to enrich the gene co-expression modules of diverse flowering time populations (FT) and floral bud differentiation stages (ST). In the MEyellow module, five core hub genes were identified, including CO14, GI, SPL8, SPL9, and SPL15. The correlation network of hub genes showed that they interact with SPLs, AP2, hormone response factors (auxin, gibberellin, ethylene, and abscisic acid), and several transcription factors (MADS-box transcription factor, bHLH, MYB, and NAC3). It suggests the important role of these genes and the complex molecular mechanism of floral bud differentiation and flowering time in L. radiata. These results can preliminarily explain the molecular mechanism of floral bud differentiation and provide new candidate genes for the flowering regulation of Lycoris. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Research Advances in Ornamental Plants Breeding and Biotechnology)

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Open AccessArticle

Integrated Transcriptome and Metabolome Analysis of Color Change and Low-Temperature Response during Flowering of Prunus mume

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Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2022, 23(21), 12831; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms232112831 - 24 Oct 2022

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1149

Abstract

In China, Prunus mume is a famous flowering tree that has been cultivated for 3000 years. P. mume grows in tropical and subtropical regions, and most varieties lack cold resistance; thus, it is necessary to study the low-temperature response mechanism of P. mume to expand the scope of its cultivation. We used the integrated transcriptomic and metabolomic analysis of a cold-resistant variety of P. mume ‘Meiren’, to identify key genes and metabolites associated with low temperatures during flowering. The ‘Meiren’ cultivar responded in a timely manner to temperature by way of a low-temperature signal transduction pathway. After experiencing low temperatures, the petals fade and wilt, resulting in low ornamental value. At the same time, in the cold response pathway, the activities of related transcription factors up- or downregulate genes and metabolites related to low temperature-induced proteins, osmotic regulators, protective enzyme systems, and biosynthesis and metabolism of sugars and acids. Our findings promote research on the adaptation of P. mume to low temperatures during wintering and early flowering for domestication and breeding. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Research Advances in Ornamental Plants Breeding and Biotechnology)

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