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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Kearneysville, West Virginia » Appalachian Fruit Research Laboratory » Innovative Fruit Production, Improvement, and Protection » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #356576
Title: Association of the phenylpropanoid pathway with dormancy and adaptive trait variation in apricot (Prunus armeniaca)

Author
item CONRAD, ANNA - University Of Kentucky
item YU, JIA - University Of Tennessee
item STATON, MARGARET - University Of Tennessee
item AUDERGON, JEAN-MARC - Inland Northwest Research Alliance, Inra
item DECROOCQ, VERONIQUE - Inland Northwest Research Alliance, Inra
item KNAGGE, KEVIN - David H Murdock Research Institute
item CHEN, HUADONG - David H Murdock Research Institute
item ZHEBENTYAYEVA, TATYANA - Clemson University
item Liu, Zongrang
item Dardick, Christopher - Chris
item NELSON, DANA - University Of Kentucky
item ABBOTT, ALBERT - University Of Kentucky

Submitted to: Tree Physiology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 4/29/2019
Publication Date: 7/4/2019
Citation: Conrad, A., Yu, J., Staton, M., Audergon, J., Decroocq, V., Knagge, K., Chen, H., Zhebentyayeva, T., Liu, Z., Dardick, C.D., Nelson, D., Abbott, A. 2019. Association of the phenylpropanoid pathway with dormancy and adaptive trait variation in apricot (Prunus armeniaca). Tree Physiology. https://doi.org/10.1093/treephys/tpz053.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/treephys/tpz053

Interpretive Summary: Plants adapt seasonal change and develop a winter dormancy to avoid and survive freezing injury. Dormancy also affect flower time and bud break, which is directly related to prevention of spring frost, and one of the key phenological traits for tree fruit breeding. However, how dormancy and flower time is controlled and regulated remained largely unknown. This work focused on analysis of gene expression and secondary metabolic pathways in apricot, aiming at finding key genetic and biochemical factors that control the dormancy and flower time. A relationship between the phenylpropanoid pathway metabolite production and gene expression associated with dormancy in Prunus armeniaca L. (apricot) and flower time was delineated. A few secondary metabolic compounds were extensively analyzed, and their expression pattern and regulation during dormancy period and flowering have been defined, which could potentially serve as biomarkers for selection of new cultivars with various flower time trait in stone fruit crops.

Technical Abstract: Phenological traits, e.g. winter dormancy, are mechanisms by which perennial plants, including tree species, have adapted to stressful conditions. While there are many mechanisms by which trees adapt and respond to stress, the phenylpropanoid pathway in particular is known to be associated with a diverse suite of plant stress responses. In this study, we explored the relationship between the phenylpropanoid pathway metabolite production and gene expression and adaptive trait variation associated with dormancy in Prunus armeniaca L. (apricot). Concentrations of eight phenylpropanoid metabolites were measured throughout dormancy and upon the resumption of growth post-dormancy in floral buds of varieties that differed phenotypically in bloom date (BD). There was a significant interaction effect of time and BD on the concentration of each of the compounds measured (mixed ANOVA, P < 0.05), with the concentration of most phenylpropanoid metabolites dropping precipitously when sepals and petals emerged. While phenylpropanoid biosynthetic gene expression patterns were less uniform, expression changed over time, and was impacted, although to a lesser degree, by BD phenotype. In addition, phenylpropanoid metabolite concentrations and normalized gene expression data were used independently to examine natural groupings of samples based on time and BD phenotype. Separation was most pronounced starting around 400 chill hours, and at 800 chill hours, when early and late BD varieties were at different developmental stages. Taken together, these results suggest that the phenylpropanoid pathway is associated with dormancy and growth resumption post-dormancy in apricot floral buds. A better understanding of how apricot, and other perennial tree species respond to environmental perturbations will be critical for improvement programs aimed at identifying and breeding trees more suitable for rapidly changing environments.