JcSEUSS1 negatively regulates reproductive organ development in perennial woody Jatropha curcas.

Overexpression of JcSEUSS1 resulted in late flowering, reduced flower number, wrinkled kernels, and decreased seed yield in Jatopha curcas, while downregulation of JcSEUSS1 increased flower number and seed production. The seed oil of Jatropha curcas is suitable as an ideal alternative for diesel fuel, yet the seed yield of Jatropha is restricted by its small number of female flowers and low seed setting rate. Therefore, it is crucial to identify genes that regulate flowering and seed set, and hence improve seed yield.

Overexpression of Type 1 and 2 Diacylglycerol Acyltransferase Genes ( and ) Enhances Oil Production in the Woody Perennial Biofuel Plant .

Diacylglycerol acyltransferase (DGAT) is the only enzyme that catalyzes the acyl-CoA-dependent acylation of sn-1, 2-diacylglycerol (DAG) to form triacylglycerol (TAG). The two main types of DGAT enzymes in the woody perennial biofuel plant , JcDGAT1 and JcDGAT2, were previously characterized only in heterologous systems. In this study, we investigated the functions of and in and were found to be predominantly expressed during the late stages of seed development, in which large amounts of oil accumulated.

ortholog of () promoter exhibits floral-specific activity in .

Background: L., a perennial oilseed plant, is considered as a promising feedstock for biodiesel production. Genetic modification of flowering characteristics is critical for breeding.

De novo genome assembly and Hi-C analysis reveal an association between chromatin architecture alterations and sex differentiation in the woody plant Jatropha curcas.

Background: Chromatin architecture is an essential factor regulating gene transcription in different cell types and developmental phases. However, studies on chromatin architecture in perennial woody plants and on the function of chromatin organization in sex determination have not been reported.

Results: Here, we produced a chromosome-scale de novo genome assembly of the woody plant Jatropha curcas with a total length of 379.

Flower-Specific Overproduction of Cytokinins Altered Flower Development and Sex Expression in the Perennial Woody Plant L.

L. is monoecious with a low female-to-male ratio, which is one of the factors restricting its seed yield. Because the phytohormone cytokinins play an essential role in flower development, particularly pistil development, in this study, we elevated the cytokinin levels in flowers through transgenic expression of a cytokinin biosynthetic gene () from Arabidopsis under the control of a orthologue of () promoter that is predominantly active in flowers.

Transcriptome analysis of two inflorescence branching mutants reveals cytokinin is an important regulator in controlling inflorescence architecture in the woody plant Jatropha curcas.

Background: In higher plants, inflorescence architecture is an important agronomic trait directly determining seed yield. However, little information is available on the regulatory mechanism of inflorescence development in perennial woody plants. Based on two inflorescence branching mutants, we investigated the transcriptome differences in inflorescence buds between two mutants and wild-type (WT) plants by RNA-Seq to identify the genes and regulatory networks controlling inflorescence architecture in Jatropha curcas L.

Overexpression of () Induces Dwarfism and Smaller Leaves, Flowers and Fruits in and .

Gibberellins (GAs) are plant hormones that play fundamental roles in plant growth and development. Gibberellin 2-oxidase (GA2ox) plays a direct role in determining the levels of bioactive GAs by catalyzing bioactive GAs or their immediate precursors to inactive forms. In this study, a gene, designated , was isolated from .

De novo transcriptome assembly and comparative analysis between male and benzyladenine-induced female inflorescence buds of Plukenetia volubilis.

Plukenetia volubilis is a promising oilseed crop due to its seeds being rich in unsaturated fatty acids, especially alpha-linolenic acid. P. volubilis is monoecious, with separate male and female flowers on the same inflorescence.

Comparative transcriptome analysis of axillary buds in response to the shoot branching regulators gibberellin A3 and 6-benzyladenine in Jatropha curcas.

Cytokinin (CK) is the primary hormone that positively regulates axillary bud outgrowth. However, in many woody plants, such as Jatropha curcas, gibberellin (GA) also promotes shoot branching. The molecular mechanisms underlying GA and CK interaction in the regulation of bud outgrowth in Jatropha remain unclear.

Comparative Transcriptome Analysis between Gynoecious and Monoecious Plants Identifies Regulatory Networks Controlling Sex Determination in .

Most germplasms of the biofuel plant are monoecious. A gynoecious genotype of was found, whose male flowers are aborted at early stage of inflorescence development. To investigate the regulatory mechanism of transition from monoecious to gynoecious plants, a comparative transcriptome analysis between gynoecious and monoecious inflorescences were performed.

An ortholog of LEAFY in Jatropha curcas regulates flowering time and floral organ development.

Jatropha curcas seeds are an excellent biofuel feedstock, but seed yields of Jatropha are limited by its poor flowering and fruiting ability. Thus, identifying genes controlling flowering is critical for genetic improvement of seed yield. We isolated the JcLFY, a Jatropha ortholog of Arabidopsis thaliana LEAFY (LFY), and identified JcLFY function by overexpressing it in Arabidopsis and Jatropha.

Ectopic expression of Jatropha curcas APETALA1 (JcAP1) caused early flowering in Arabidopsis, but not in Jatropha.

Jatropha curcas is a promising feedstock for biofuel production because Jatropha oil is highly suitable for the production of biodiesel and bio-jet fuels. However, Jatropha exhibits a low seed yield as a result of unreliable and poor flowering. APETALA1 (AP1) is a floral meristem and organ identity gene in higher plants.

Isolation and characterization of the Jatropha curcas APETALA1 (JcAP1) promoter conferring preferential expression in inflorescence buds.

The 1.5 kb JcAP1 promoter from the biofuel plant Jatropha curcas is predominantly active in the inflorescence buds of transgenic plants, in which the -1313/-1057 region is essential for maintaining the activity. Arabidopsis thaliana APETALA1 (AP1) is a MADS-domain transcription factor gene that functions primarily in flower development.

An efficient protocol for -mediated transformation of the biofuel plant by optimizing kanamycin concentration and duration of delayed selection.

is considered a potential biodiesel feedstock crop. Currently, the value of is limited because its seed yield is generally low. Transgenic modification is a promising approach to improve the seed yield of Although -mediated genetic transformation of has been pursued for several years, the transformation efficiency remains unsatisfying.

Selection of Reliable Reference Genes for Gene Expression Studies of a Promising Oilseed Crop, Plukenetia volubilis, by Real-Time Quantitative PCR.

Real-time quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) is a reliable and widely used method for gene expression analysis. The accuracy of the determination of a target gene expression level by RT-qPCR demands the use of appropriate reference genes to normalize the mRNA levels among different samples. However, suitable reference genes for RT-qPCR have not been identified in Sacha inchi (Plukenetia volubilis), a promising oilseed crop known for its polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA)-rich seeds.

Isolation and characterization of an ubiquitin extension protein gene (JcUEP) promoter from Jatropha curcas.

The JcUEP promoter is active constitutively in the bio-fuel plant Jatropha curcas , and is an alternative to the widely used CaMV35S promoter for driving constitutive overexpression of transgenes in Jatropha. Well-characterized promoters are required for transgenic breeding of Jatropha curcas, a biofuel feedstock with great potential for production of bio-diesel and bio-jet fuel. In this study, an ubiquitin extension protein gene from Jatropha, designated JcUEP, was identified to be ubiquitously expressed.

A promoter analysis of MOTHER OF FT AND TFL1 1 (JcMFT1), a seed-preferential gene from the biofuel plant Jatropha curcas.

MOTHER OF FT AND TFL1 (MFT)-like genes belong to the phosphatidylethanoamine-binding protein (PEBP) gene family in plants. In contrast to their homologs FLOWERING LOCUS T (FT)-like and TERMINAL FLOWER 1 (TFL1)-like genes, which are involved in the regulation of the flowering time pathway, MFT-like genes function mainly during seed development and germination. In this study, a full-length cDNA of the MFT-like gene JcMFT1 from the biodiesel plant Jatropha curcas (L.