Overexpression of an ethylene-forming ACC oxidase (ACO) gene precedes the Minute Hilum seed coat phenotype in Glycine max.

Background: To elucidate features of seed development, we investigated the transcriptome of a soybean isoline from the germplasm collection that contained an introgressed allele known as minute hilum (mi) which confers a smaller hilum region where the seed attaches to the pod and also results in seed coat cracking surrounding the hilum region.

Results: RNAs were extracted from immature seed from an extended hilum region (i.e., the hilum and a small ring of tissue surrounding the hilum in which the cracks form) at three different developmental stages:10-25, 25-50 and 50-100 mg seed fresh weight in two independent replicates for each stage. The transcriptomes of these samples from both the Clark isoline containing the mi allele (PI 547628, UC413, i R t mi G), and its recurrent Clark 63 parent isoline (PI 548532, UC7, i R T Mi g), which was used for six generations of backcrossing, were compared for differential expression of 88,648 Glyma models of the soybean genome Wm82.a2. The RNA sequence data obtained from the 12 cDNA libraries were subjected to padj value < 0.05 and at least two-fold expression differences to select with confidence genes differentially expressed in the hilum-containing tissue of the seed coat between the two lines. Glyma.09G008400 annotated as encoding an ethylene forming enzyme, ACC oxidase (ACO), was found to be highly overexpressed in the mi hilum region at 165 RPKMs (reads per kilobase per million mapped reads) compared to the standard line at just 0.03 RPKMs. Evidence of changes in expression of genes downstream of the ethylene pathway included those involved in auxin and gibberellin hormone action and extensive differences in expression of cell wall protein genes. These changes are postulated to determine the restricted hilum size and cracking phenotypes.

Conclusions: We present transcriptome and phenotypic evidence that substantially higher expression of an ethylene-forming ACO gene likely shifts hormone balance and sets in motion downstream changes resulting in a smaller hilum phenotype and the cracks observed in the minute hilum (mi) isoline as compared to its recurrent parent.