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ARS Home » Midwest Area » Lexington, Kentucky » Forage-animal Production Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #312501
Title: Transcriptome response in different tissues of Lolium arundinaceum to the fungal endophyte Epichloe coenophiala

Author
item Dinkins, Randy
item NAGABHYRU, P - University Of Kentucky
item Graham, Michelle
item Boykin, Deborah
item SCHARDL, C - University Of Kentucky

Submitted to: Plant and Animal Genome Conference Proceedings
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 10/21/2014
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Tall fescue (Lolium arundinaceum) plants symbiotic with the endophytic fungus, Epichloe coenophiala , (E+), have been shown to have better survivability and persistence than plants lacking the endophyte (E-). To understand more about the grass-endophyte interactions and how endophyte affects the host plant physiology and gene expression, we have analyzed gene expression in different tissues (leaf, pseudostem, crown and roots) of a genetically identical E+ and E- clone grown in the greenhouse using RNA-Seq technology. An in house tall fescue transcriptome assembly was generated using the RNA-Seq reads and mapping of the reads from the different tissue/endophyte combinations onto the assembly was done using CLC Genomics Workbench. Analysis of differential gene expression was done using JMP Genomics and significant differences were calculated using a False Discovery Rate at a< 0.1 where significant differences (>2-fold; P<0.0001) were calculated using computed adjustments for each comparison separately. The results indicated that 131 unigenes were differentially expressed specifically between the E+ and E- tissues, 93 in the leaves, 28 in the pseudostem, 26 in the crown tissues and 25 in the roots. No unigene was differentially expressed across all tissues, although 31 were found across two tissues, eight across leaf and root, two across leaf and pseudostem and 21 across the pseudostem and crown tissues. One gene ontology term was found to be significant in E- leaf tissues, GO:0002679 (respiratory burst during defense response), although a number of other DEG’s in the leaf and other tissues, were also associated with defense and abiotic response.