Transcriptome-Wide Gene Expression Plasticity in <i>Stipa grandis</i> in Response to Grazing Intensity Differences
Organisms have evolved effective and distinct adaptive strategies to survive. <i>Stipa grandis</i> is a representative species for studying the grazing effect on typical steppe plants in the Inner Mongolia Plateau. Although phenotypic (morphological and physiological) variations in <i...
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MDPI AG
2021-11-01
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| Series: | International Journal of Molecular Sciences |
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| author | Zhenhua Dang Yuanyuan Jia Yunyun Tian Jiabin Li Yanan Zhang Lei Huang Cunzhu Liang Peter J. Lockhart Cory Matthew Frank Yonghong Li |
| author_facet | Zhenhua Dang Yuanyuan Jia Yunyun Tian Jiabin Li Yanan Zhang Lei Huang Cunzhu Liang Peter J. Lockhart Cory Matthew Frank Yonghong Li |
| author_sort | Zhenhua Dang |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Organisms have evolved effective and distinct adaptive strategies to survive. <i>Stipa grandis</i> is a representative species for studying the grazing effect on typical steppe plants in the Inner Mongolia Plateau. Although phenotypic (morphological and physiological) variations in <i>S. grandis</i> in response to long-term grazing have been identified, the molecular mechanisms underlying adaptations and plastic responses remain largely unknown. Here, we performed a transcriptomic analysis to investigate changes in gene expression of <i>S. grandis</i> under four different grazing intensities. As a result, a total of 2357 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified among the tested grazing intensities, suggesting long-term grazing resulted in gene expression plasticity that affected diverse biological processes and metabolic pathways in <i>S. grandis</i>. DEGs were identified in RNA-Seq and qRT-PCR analyses that indicated the modulation of the Calvin–Benson cycle and photorespiration metabolic pathways. The key gene expression profiles encoding various proteins (e.g., ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase, fructose-1,6-bisphosphate aldolase, glycolate oxidase, etc.) involved in these pathways suggest that they may synergistically respond to grazing to increase the resilience and stress tolerance of <i>S. grandis</i>. Our findings provide scientific clues for improving grassland use and protection and identifying important questions to address in future transcriptome studies. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T06:00:21Z |
| format | Article |
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| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1661-6596 1422-0067 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T06:00:21Z |
| publishDate | 2021-11-01 |
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| record_format | Article |
| series | International Journal of Molecular Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-0f857e66552e4f988fcb376664599cdc2023-11-22T20:59:33ZengMDPI AGInternational Journal of Molecular Sciences1661-65961422-00672021-11-0122211188210.3390/ijms222111882Transcriptome-Wide Gene Expression Plasticity in <i>Stipa grandis</i> in Response to Grazing Intensity DifferencesZhenhua Dang0Yuanyuan Jia1Yunyun Tian2Jiabin Li3Yanan Zhang4Lei Huang5Cunzhu Liang6Peter J. Lockhart7Cory Matthew8Frank Yonghong Li9Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Ecology and Resource Use of the Mongolian Plateau & Inner Mongolia Key Laboratory of Grassland Ecology, School of Ecology and Environment, Inner Mongolia University, Hohhot 010021, ChinaMinistry of Education Key Laboratory of Ecology and Resource Use of the Mongolian Plateau & Inner Mongolia Key Laboratory of Grassland Ecology, School of Ecology and Environment, Inner Mongolia University, Hohhot 010021, ChinaMinistry of Education Key Laboratory of Herbage & Endemic Crop Biotechnology, School of Life Sciences, Inner Mongolia University, Hohhot 010021, ChinaMinistry of Education Key Laboratory of Ecology and Resource Use of the Mongolian Plateau & Inner Mongolia Key Laboratory of Grassland Ecology, School of Ecology and Environment, Inner Mongolia University, Hohhot 010021, ChinaMinistry of Education Key Laboratory of Ecology and Resource Use of the Mongolian Plateau & Inner Mongolia Key Laboratory of Grassland Ecology, School of Ecology and Environment, Inner Mongolia University, Hohhot 010021, ChinaMinistry of Education Key Laboratory of Ecology and Resource Use of the Mongolian Plateau & Inner Mongolia Key Laboratory of Grassland Ecology, School of Ecology and Environment, Inner Mongolia University, Hohhot 010021, ChinaMinistry of Education Key Laboratory of Ecology and Resource Use of the Mongolian Plateau & Inner Mongolia Key Laboratory of Grassland Ecology, School of Ecology and Environment, Inner Mongolia University, Hohhot 010021, ChinaSchool of Fundamental Sciences, College of Sciences, Massey University, Palmerston North 4442, New ZealandSchool of Agriculture and Environment, Massey University, Palmerston North 4442, New ZealandMinistry of Education Key Laboratory of Ecology and Resource Use of the Mongolian Plateau & Inner Mongolia Key Laboratory of Grassland Ecology, School of Ecology and Environment, Inner Mongolia University, Hohhot 010021, ChinaOrganisms have evolved effective and distinct adaptive strategies to survive. <i>Stipa grandis</i> is a representative species for studying the grazing effect on typical steppe plants in the Inner Mongolia Plateau. Although phenotypic (morphological and physiological) variations in <i>S. grandis</i> in response to long-term grazing have been identified, the molecular mechanisms underlying adaptations and plastic responses remain largely unknown. Here, we performed a transcriptomic analysis to investigate changes in gene expression of <i>S. grandis</i> under four different grazing intensities. As a result, a total of 2357 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified among the tested grazing intensities, suggesting long-term grazing resulted in gene expression plasticity that affected diverse biological processes and metabolic pathways in <i>S. grandis</i>. DEGs were identified in RNA-Seq and qRT-PCR analyses that indicated the modulation of the Calvin–Benson cycle and photorespiration metabolic pathways. The key gene expression profiles encoding various proteins (e.g., ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase, fructose-1,6-bisphosphate aldolase, glycolate oxidase, etc.) involved in these pathways suggest that they may synergistically respond to grazing to increase the resilience and stress tolerance of <i>S. grandis</i>. Our findings provide scientific clues for improving grassland use and protection and identifying important questions to address in future transcriptome studies.https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/22/21/11882comparative transcriptomic analysisgene expression plasticitydifferentially expressed genegrazing adaptationCalvin–Benson cyclephotorespiration |
| spellingShingle | Zhenhua Dang Yuanyuan Jia Yunyun Tian Jiabin Li Yanan Zhang Lei Huang Cunzhu Liang Peter J. Lockhart Cory Matthew Frank Yonghong Li Transcriptome-Wide Gene Expression Plasticity in <i>Stipa grandis</i> in Response to Grazing Intensity Differences International Journal of Molecular Sciences comparative transcriptomic analysis gene expression plasticity differentially expressed gene grazing adaptation Calvin–Benson cycle photorespiration |
| title | Transcriptome-Wide Gene Expression Plasticity in <i>Stipa grandis</i> in Response to Grazing Intensity Differences |
| title_full | Transcriptome-Wide Gene Expression Plasticity in <i>Stipa grandis</i> in Response to Grazing Intensity Differences |
| title_fullStr | Transcriptome-Wide Gene Expression Plasticity in <i>Stipa grandis</i> in Response to Grazing Intensity Differences |
| title_full_unstemmed | Transcriptome-Wide Gene Expression Plasticity in <i>Stipa grandis</i> in Response to Grazing Intensity Differences |
| title_short | Transcriptome-Wide Gene Expression Plasticity in <i>Stipa grandis</i> in Response to Grazing Intensity Differences |
| title_sort | transcriptome wide gene expression plasticity in i stipa grandis i in response to grazing intensity differences |
| topic | comparative transcriptomic analysis gene expression plasticity differentially expressed gene grazing adaptation Calvin–Benson cycle photorespiration |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/22/21/11882 |
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