DNA Demethylation Induces Tree Peony Flowering with a Low Deformity Rate Compared to Gibberellin by Inducing <i>PsFT</i> Expression under Forcing Culture Conditions
Gibberellin (GA) is frequently used in tree peony forcing culture, but inappropriate application often causes flower deformity. Here, 5-azacytidine (5-azaC), an efficient DNA demethylating reagent, induced tree peony flowering with a low deformity rate by rapidly inducing <i>PsFT</i> exp...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2022-06-01
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| Series: | International Journal of Molecular Sciences |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/23/12/6632 |
| Summary: | Gibberellin (GA) is frequently used in tree peony forcing culture, but inappropriate application often causes flower deformity. Here, 5-azacytidine (5-azaC), an efficient DNA demethylating reagent, induced tree peony flowering with a low deformity rate by rapidly inducing <i>PsFT</i> expression, whereas GA treatment affected various flowering pathway genes with strong pleiotropy. The 5-azaC treatment, but not GA, significantly reduced the methylation level in the <i>PsFT</i> promoter with the demethylation of five CG contexts in a 369 bp CG-rich region, and eight light-responsive related <i>cis</i>-elements were also predicted in this region, accompanied by enhanced leaf photosynthetic efficiency. Through GO analysis, all methylation-closer differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were located in the <i>thylakoid</i>, the main site for photosynthesis, and were mainly involved in <i>response to stimulus</i> and <i>single-organism process</i>, whereas GA-closer DEGs had a wider distribution inside and outside of cells, associated with 12 categories of processes and regulations. We further mapped five candidate DEGs with potential flowering regulation, including three kinases (<i>SnRK1</i>, <i>WAK2,</i> and <i>5PTase7</i>) and two bioactive enzymes (<i>cytochrome P450</i> and <i>SBH1</i>). In summary, 5-azaC and GA may have individual roles in inducing tree peony flowering, and 5-azaC could be a preferable regulation approach; DNA demethylation is suggested to be more focused on flowering regulation with <i>PsFT</i> playing a core role through promoter demethylation. In addition, 5-azaC may partially undertake or replace the light-signal function, combined with other factors, such as <i>SnRK1</i>, in regulating flowering. This work provides new ideas for improving tree peony forcing culture technology. |
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| ISSN: | 1661-6596 1422-0067 |