MicroRNAs (miRNAs)
play an important role in the regulation of
gene expression. They play a regulatory role in various nutrient assimilatory
pathways of plants; however, their role in the regulation of sulfur
uptake and assimilatory pathways in mustard cultivars under high/low
sulfur conditions is not elucidated. Sulfur is essential for plant
growth and development, and its deficiency can cause a decline in
oil seed content and thus lower the economic yield in
Brassica
juncea
. In this study, different miRNAs involved in the regulation
of sulfur uptake and assimilation pathways in
B. juncea
were identified using a psRNA target analyzer and miRanda database
tools. The predicted miRNAs that belong to 10 highly conserved families
were validated using stem-loop RT-PCR. The
B. juncea
cultivars Pusa Jaikisan, Pusa Bold, and Varuna were kept in sulfur-excessive
(high) and -deficient (insufficient) conditions, and expression studies
of miRNAs and their target mRNAs were carried out using qRT-PCR. The
correlation between the expression pattern of miRNAs and their target
genes showed their potential role in sulfur uptake and assimilation.
Analysis with 5′ RACE revealed the authentic target of miRNAs.
The influence of S treatments on metabolites and sulfur content was
also studied using GC-MS and a CHNS analyzer. Our study showed the
potential role of miRNAs in the regulation of sulfur uptake and assimilation
and put forward the implications of these molecules to enhance the
sulfur content of
B. juncea.
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