Genome and systems biology of Melilotus albus provides insights into coumarins biosynthesis.

Melilotus species are used as green manure and rotation crops worldwide and contain abundant pharmacologically active coumarins. However, there is a paucity of information on its genome and coumarin production and function. Here, we reported a chromosome-scale assembly of Melilotus albus genome with 1.

Development of molecular markers based on LTR retrotransposon in the Cleistogenes songorica genome.

Long terminal repeat retrotransposons (LTR-RTs) contribute a large fraction of many sequenced plant genomes and play important roles in genomic diversity and phenotypic variations. LTR-RTs are abundantly distributed in plant genomes, facilitating the development of markers based on LTR-RTs for a variety of genotyping purposes. Whole-genome analysis of LTR-RTs was performed in Cleistogenes songorica.

Genome-Wide Analysis and Expression Profiles of the Dof Family in under Temperature, Salt and ABA Treatment.

The DNA-binding with one zinc finger () family of plant-specific transcription factors has a variety of important functions in gene transcriptional regulation, development, and stress responses. However, the structure and expression patterns of family have not been identified in , which is an important xerophytic and perennial gramineous grass in desert grassland. In this study, 50 genes were identified in and could be classified into four groups.

Genome-wide development of miRNA-based SSR markers in Cleistogenes songorica and analysis of their transferability to Gramineae/non-Gramineae species.

Simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers are commonly used for many genetic applications, such as map construction, fingerprinting, and genetic diversity analyses, due to their high reproducibility, polymorphism, and abundance. Endogenous miRNAs play essential roles in plant development and gene expression under diverse biotic and abiotic stress conditions. In the present study, we predicted 110 miRNA-SSR primer pairs from 287 precursor miRNAs.

Genetic diversity, phylogenetic structure and development of core collections in Melilotus accessions from a Chinese gene bank.

Melilotus is an important forage legume, with high values as feed and medicine, and widely used as green manure, honey plant, and wildlife habitat enhancer. The genetic diversity, structure and subdivision of this forage crop remain unclear, and plant genetic resources are the basis of biodiversity and ecosystem diversity and have attracted increasing attention. In this study, the whole collection of 573 accessions from the National Gene Bank of Forage Germplasm (NGBFG, China) and 48 accessions from the National Plant Germplasm System (NPGS, USA) in genus Melilotus were measured with respect to five seed characters: seed length, width, width-to-length ratio, circumference and 100-seed weight.

Differential co-expression networks of long non-coding RNAs and mRNAs in Cleistogenes songorica under water stress and during recovery.

Background: Water stress seriously constrains plant growth and yield. Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) serve as versatile regulators in various biological regulatory processes. To date, the systematic screening and potential functions of lncRNA have not yet been characterized in Cleistogenes songorica, especially under water stress conditions.

Analysis of miRNAs and their target genes in five Melilotus albus NILs with different coumarin content.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) exhibit diverse and important roles in regulation of various biological processes at the post-transcriptional level in plants. In this study, Melilotus albus miRNA and their target genes were elucidated from five M. albus near-isogenic lines which differ in coumarin content to construct small RNA libraries through high-throughput sequencing.

Analysis of microRNA reveals cleistogamous and chasmogamous floret divergence in dimorphic plant.

Cleistogenes songorica, a grass species that exhibits two spatially different type of inflorescence, chastogamy (CH), flowers localized at the top, and cleistogamy (CL) flowers embedded in leaf sheath. This study aimed at dissecting reasons underlying these distinct floral development patterns at morphological and microRNA level. Phenotyping for CH and CL was conducted and four small RNA libraries were constructed from the CH and CL flowers for high-throughput sequencing to identify the differentiated miRNAs.

Coumarin Content, Morphological Variation, and Molecular Phylogenetics of Melilotus.

and are widely used in forage production and herbal medicine due to the biological activity of their coumarins, which have many biological and pharmacological activities, including anti-HIV and anti-tumor effects. To comprehensively evaluate and coumarin content (Cou), morphological variation, and molecular phylogeny, we examined the Cou, five morphological traits and the molecular characterization based on the L-F spacer and internal transcribed spacer (ITS) regions of 93 accessions. Significant ( < 0.

Genetic variation and diversity in 199 Melilotus accessions based on a combination of 5 DNA sequences.

Melilotus is an important genus of legume plants and an herbage with excellent nitrogen fixation; it can tolerate extreme environmental conditions and possesses important medicinal value. However, there is limited genetic information about the genus; thus, we analysed four chloroplast loci (rbcL, matK, psbA-trnH and trnL-F) and one nuclear region (ITS) to determine the genetic diversity of 199 accessions from 18 Melilotus species. The rbcL and matK sequences were highly conserved, whereas the trnL-F and ITS sequences contained variable and parsimony-informative sites.

Cross-species transferability of EST-SSR markers developed from the transcriptome of Melilotus and their application to population genetics research.

Melilotus is one of the most important legume forages, but the lack of molecular markers has limited the development and utilization of Melilotus germplasm resources. In the present study, 151 M clean reads were generated from various genotypes of Melilotus albus using Illumina sequencing. A total of 19,263 potential EST-SSRs were identified from 104,358 unigene sequences.

Transcriptomic profiling of Melilotus albus near-isogenic lines contrasting for coumarin content.

Coumarin and its derivatives are widely used as fragrances in industrial products and have medical value. The goal of the present study was to discover genes and pathways related to coumarin biosynthesis in Melilotus albus using transcriptome analysis. The genes of five M.