Genome-Wide Identification of <i>CsATGs</i> in Tea Plant and the Involvement of <i>CsATG8e</i> in Nitrogen Utilization
Nitrogen (N) is a macroelement with an indispensable role in the growth and development of plants, and tea plant (<i>Camellia sinensis</i>) is an evergreen perennial woody species with young shoots for harvest. During senescence or upon N stress, autophagy has been shown to be induced in...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2020-09-01
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| Series: | International Journal of Molecular Sciences |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/21/19/7043 |
| Summary: | Nitrogen (N) is a macroelement with an indispensable role in the growth and development of plants, and tea plant (<i>Camellia sinensis</i>) is an evergreen perennial woody species with young shoots for harvest. During senescence or upon N stress, autophagy has been shown to be induced in leaves, involving a variety of autophagy-related genes (<i>ATGs</i>), which have not been characterized in tea plant yet. In this study, a genome-wide survey in tea plant genome identified a total of 80 <i>Camellia Sinensis</i> autophagy-related genes, <i>CsATGs.</i> The expression of <i>CsATG8s</i> in the tea plant showed an obvious increase from S1 (stage 1) to S4 (stage 4), especially for <i>CsATG8e</i>. The expression levels of <i>AtATGs</i> (<i>Arabidopsis thaliana</i>) and genes involved in N transport and assimilation were greatly improved in <i>CsATG8e-</i>overexpressed <i>Arabidopsis</i>. Compared with wild type, the overexpression plants showed earlier bolting, an increase in amino N content, as well as a decrease in biomass and the levels of N, phosphorus and potassium. However, the N level was found significantly higher in APER (aerial part excluding rosette) in the overexpression plants relative to wild type. All these results demonstrated a convincing function of <i>CsATG8e</i> in N remobilization and plant development, indicating <i>CsATG8e</i> as a potential gene for modifying plant nutrient utilization. |
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| ISSN: | 1661-6596 1422-0067 |