Transcriptome analysis of strawberry (Fragaria × ananassa) fruits under osmotic stresses and identification of genes related to ascorbic acid pathway

Abstract

Strawberry (Fragaria ananassa Duch.) is an economically important fruit with a high demand owing to its good taste and medicinal properties. However, its cultivation is affected by various biotic and abiotic stresses. Plants exhibit several intrinsic mechanisms to deal with stresses. In the case of strawberry, the mechanisms highlighting the response against these stresses remain to be elucidated, which has hampered the efforts to develop and cultivate strawberry plants with high yield and quality. Although a virtual reference genome of F. ananassa has recently been published, there is still a lack of information on the expression of genes in response to various stresses. Therefore, to provide molecular information for further studies with strawberry plants, we present the reference transcriptome dataset of F. ananassa, assembled and annotated from deep RNA‐Seq data of fruits cultivated under salinity and drought stresses. We also systematically arranged a series of transcripts differentially expressed during these stresses, with an emphasis on genes related to the accumulation of ascorbic acid (AsA). Ascorbic acid is the most potent antioxidant present in these fruits and highly considered during biofortification. A comparison of the expression profile of these genes by RT‐qPCR with the content of AsA in the fruits verified a tight regulation and balance between the expression of genes, from biosynthesis, degradation and recycling pathways, resulting in the reduced content of AsA in fruits under these stresses. These results provide a useful repertoire of genes for metabolic engineering, thereby improving the tolerance to stresses.

Exogenous 5‐aminolevulinic acid improves strawberry tolerance to osmotic stress and its possible mechanisms

“…As one kind of delicious and nutritive fruit, strawberry is very popular in the fresh fruit market worldwide (Feng et al , Galli et al ). It has been reputed as the ‘fruit queen’.…”

Untargeted metabolomics of strawberry (Fragaria x ananassa ‘Camarosa’) fruit from plants grown under osmotic stress conditions

“…Among abiotic stressors, drought and salt stress, caused by excess Na + and Cl − ions, are the most limiting factors impacting plant growth, development, and survival. Under extreme drought and salt stress, plants respond by changing the expression of some stress‐related genes affecting physiological aspects, leading to reduced yield and biomass . However, recent studies indicate that moderate stress may serve as an effective biofortification strategy to improve the functional quality of fruits without a significant reduction in yield …”

“…Under extreme drought and salt stress, plants respond by changing the expression of some stress-related genes affecting physiological aspects, leading to reduced yield and biomass. [1][2][3] However, recent studies indicate that moderate stress may serve as an effective biofortification strategy to improve the functional quality of fruits without a significant reduction in yield. 4,5 General metabolites such as carbohydrates, fatty acids, proteins, and nucleic acids are synthesized by all plant species and play fundamental roles in the plant's life cycle and growth.…”

Genome-wide identification, and characterization of the CDPK gene family reveal their involvement in abiotic stress response in Fragaria x ananassa

“…ABA content was also observed to increase in strawberry fruits under saline and drought stresses; however, ABA biosynthesis related genes (FaNCEDs, FaCYP707As, FaGTs, and FaBGs) were mostly upregulated only in drought stressed fruits 25 . Similarly, only the drought stress increased the concentrations of ascorbic acid, sugars, and methylsyringin, whereas salt stress induced the synthesis of amino acids in the fruits 26,70 . A mechanism of salt and drought response in strawberry fruits based on these previous results and the gene expression data from this study is shown in Fig.…”