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The color of peach peel is closely related to the appearance quality and economic value of peach fruit, and anthocyanins are the predominant pigment substances for peach peel coloring. This study was based on combined metabolomic and transcriptomic analyses to investigate the effects of low light and rainy conditions during the rainy season on the accumulation of flavonoids (anthocyanins, flavonols, and proanthocyanidins) in peach peel and the transcriptional expression of related biosynthetic genes, identify and excavate key genes and transcriptional factors regulating flavonoids biosynthesis, and to provide application and theoretical basis for improving peach cultivation practices to enhance peach peel coloring during the rainy season, and further enriching the molecular mechanism of peach flavonoid biosynthesis.
The peach cultivar ‘Zhongjin Pan 7-12’ was used as the material in this study. The imitated rainy condition was regarded as treatment 1 (T1), the imitated low light and rainy conditions were regarded as treatment 2 (T2), and shelter cultivation (imitating normal cultivation environment) was the control (CK) group. Peach fruit peel samples were collected for metabolomic and RNA-Seq analyses at different stages (0D and 24D). Key candidate genes regulating flavonoids biosynthesis were identified through KEGG and weighted gene correlation network analysis (WGCNA).
The results of metabolomic analysis showed that cyanidin-3-O-glucoside, procyanidin B1, and quercetin-3-O-glucoside were the main components of anthocyanins, procyanidins, and flavonols in peach peel, respectively. Among them, cyanidin-3-O-glucoside was the predominant substance for the red coloration of peach peel. Both T1 and T2 treatments inhibited the anthocyanin accumulation in peach peel, with the more pronounced effect by T2. Through RNA-Seq result analysis, a total of 8 296 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified, among which the highest number of DEGs was obtained through the comparison group of 24D-T1 vs 0D, with 6 879. Through WGCNA, genes from turquoise, red, greenyellow, brown, blue, and magenta modules were identified as candidate genes involved in regulating flavonoid biosynthesis in peach fruit peel. KEGG enrichment analysis showed that metabolic pathways were the most enriched pathway among candidate genes in all modules except for the turquoise module. Based on WGCNA, 15 structural genes related to flavonoid biosynthesis pathway were identified. In addition, transcription factors such as MYB, bHLH, ERF, bZIP, and C2H2 were also identified.
Rainy and low light conditions significantly inhibit the anthocyanin accumulation and red coloration in peach peel. Shelter cultivation can be used to improve the appearance quality and economic value of peach fruit during the rainy season. In addition, key structural and regulatory genes related to flavonoid biosynthesis were identified, which can provide theoretical guidance for improving peach fruit coloring during the rainy season.
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