Extensive Variation in Drought-Induced Gene Expression Changes Between Loblolly Pine Genotypes.

Drought response is coordinated through expression changes in a large suite of genes. Interspecific variation in this response is common and associated with drought-tolerant and -sensitive genotypes. The extent to which different genetic networks orchestrate the adjustments to water deficit in tolerant and sensitive genotypes has not been fully elucidated, particularly in non-model or woody plants. Differential expression analysis via RNA-seq was evaluated in root tissue exposed to simulated drought conditions in two loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) clones with contrasting tolerance to drought. Loblolly pine is the prevalent conifer in southeastern U.S. and a major commercial forestry species worldwide. Significant changes in gene expression levels were found in more than 4,000 transcripts [drought-related transcripts (DRTs)]. Genotype by environment (GxE) interactions were prevalent, suggesting that different cohorts of genes are influenced by drought conditions in the tolerant vs. sensitive genotypes. Functional annotation categories and metabolic pathways associated with DRTs showed higher levels of overlap between clones, with the notable exception of GO categories in upregulated DRTs. Conversely, both differentially expressed transcription factors (TFs) and TF families were largely different between clones. Our results indicate that the response of a drought-tolerant loblolly pine genotype vs. a sensitive genotype to water limitation is remarkably different on a gene-by-gene level, although it involves similar genetic networks. Upregulated transcripts under drought conditions represent the most diverging component between genotypes, which might depend on the activation and repression of substantially different groups of TFs.

Predicting Adaptive Genetic Variation of Loblolly Pine (Pinus taeda L.) Populations Under Projected Future Climates Based on Multivariate Models.

Greenhouse gas emission and global warming are likely to cause rapid climate change within the natural range of loblolly pine over the next few decades, thus bringing uncertainty to their adaptation to the environment. Here, we studied adaptive genetic variation of loblolly pine and correlated genetic variation with bioclimatic variables using multivariate modeling methods-Redundancy Analysis, Generalized Dissimilarity Modeling, and Gradient Forests. Studied trees (N = 299) were originally sampled from their native range across eight states on the east side of the Mississippi River. Genetic variation was calculated using a total of 44,317 single-nucleotide polymorphisms acquired by exome target sequencing. The fitted models were used to predict the adaptive genetic variation on a large spatial and temporal scale. We observed east-to-west spatial genetic variation across the range, which presented evidence of isolation by distance. Different key factors drive adaptation of loblolly pine from different geographical regions. Trees residing near the northeastern edge of the range, spanning across Delaware and Maryland and mountainous areas of Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and northern Georgia, were identified to be most likely impacted by climate change based on the large difference in genetic composition under current and future climate conditions. This study provides new perspectives on adaptive genetic variation of loblolly pine in response to different climate scenarios, and the results can be used to target particular populations while developing adaptive forest management guidelines.

Detecting the genetic basis of local adaptation in loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) using whole exome-wide genotyping and an integrative landscape genomics analysis approach.

In the Southern United States, the widely distributed loblolly pine contributes greatly to lumber and pulp production, as well as providing many important ecosystem services. Climate change may affect the productivity and range of loblolly pine. Nevertheless, we have insufficient knowledge of the adaptive potential and the genetics underlying the adaptability of loblolly pine. To address this, we tested the association of 2.8 million whole exome-based single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) with climate and geographic variables, including temperature, precipitation, latitude, longitude, and elevation data. Using an integrative landscape genomics approach by combining multiple environmental association and outlier detection analyses, we identified 611 SNPs associated with 56 climate and geographic variables. Longitude, maximum temperature of the warm months and monthly precipitation associated with most SNPs, indicating their importance and complexity in shaping the genetic variation in loblolly pine. Functions of candidate genes related to terpenoid synthesis, pathogen defense, transcription factors, and abiotic stress response. We provided evidence that environment-associated SNPs also composed the genetic structure of adaptive phenotypic traits including height, diameter, metabolite levels, and gene transcript abundance. Our study promotes understanding of the genetic basis of local adaptation in loblolly pine and provides promising tools for selecting genotypes adapted to local environments in a changing climate.

Exploring the genetic basis of gene transcript abundance and metabolite levels in loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) using association mapping and network construction.

BACKGROUND: Identifying genetic variations that shape important complex traits is fundamental to the genetic improvement of important forest tree species, such as loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.), which is one of the most commonly planted forest tree species in the southern U.S. Gene transcripts and metabolites are important regulatory intermediates that link genetic variations to higher-order complex traits such as wood development and drought response. A few prior studies have associated intermediate phenotypes including mRNA expression and metabolite levels with a limited number of molecular markers, but the identification of genetic variations that regulate intermediate phenotypes needs further investigation. RESULTS: We identified 1841 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) associated with 191 gene expression mRNA phenotypes and 524 SNPs associated with 53 metabolite level phenotypes using 2.8 million exome-derived SNPs. The identified SNPs reside in genes with a wide variety of functions. We further integrated the identified SNPs and the associated expressed genes and metabolites into networks. We described the SNP-SNP interactions that significantly impacted the gene transcript abundance and metabolite level in the networks. Key loci and genes in the wood development and drought response networks were identified and analyzed. CONCLUSIONS: This work provides new candidate genes for research on the genetic basis of gene expression and metabolism linked to wood development and drought response in loblolly pine and highlights the efficiency of using association-mapping-based networks to discover candidate genes with important roles in complex biological processes.

Assessing the Gene Content of the Megagenome: Sugar Pine (Pinus lambertiana).

Sugar pine (Pinus lambertiana Douglas) is within the subgenus Strobus with an estimated genome size of 31 Gbp. Transcriptomic resources are of particular interest in conifers due to the challenges presented in their megagenomes for gene identification. In this study, we present the first comprehensive survey of the P. lambertiana transcriptome through deep sequencing of a variety of tissue types to generate more than 2.5 billion short reads. Third generation, long reads generated through PacBio Iso-Seq have been included for the first time in conifers to combat the challenges associated with de novo transcriptome assembly. A technology comparison is provided here to contribute to the otherwise scarce comparisons of second and third generation transcriptome sequencing approaches in plant species. In addition, the transcriptome reference was essential for gene model identification and quality assessment in the parallel project responsible for sequencing and assembly of the entire genome. In this study, the transcriptomic data were also used to address questions surrounding lineage-specific Dicer-like proteins in conifers. These proteins play a role in the control of transposable element proliferation and the related genome expansion in conifers.

Sequence of the Sugar Pine Megagenome.

Until very recently, complete characterization of the megagenomes of conifers has remained elusive. The diploid genome of sugar pine (Pinus lambertiana Dougl.) has a highly repetitive, 31 billion bp genome. It is the largest genome sequenced and assembled to date, and the first from the subgenus Strobus, or white pines, a group that is notable for having the largest genomes among the pines. The genome represents a unique opportunity to investigate genome "obesity" in conifers and white pines. Comparative analysis of P. lambertiana and P. taeda L. reveals new insights on the conservation, age, and diversity of the highly abundant transposable elements, the primary factor determining genome size. Like most North American white pines, the principal pathogen of P. lambertiana is white pine blister rust (Cronartium ribicola J.C. Fischer ex Raben.). Identification of candidate genes for resistance to this pathogen is of great ecological importance. The genome sequence afforded us the opportunity to make substantial progress on locating the major dominant gene for simple resistance hypersensitive response, Cr1 We describe new markers and gene annotation that are both tightly linked to Cr1 in a mapping population, and associated with Cr1 in unrelated sugar pine individuals sampled throughout the species' range, creating a solid foundation for future mapping. This genomic variation and annotated candidate genes characterized in our study of the Cr1 region are resources for future marker-assisted breeding efforts as well as for investigations of fundamental mechanisms of invasive disease and evolutionary response.

Exome genotyping, linkage disequilibrium and population structure in loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.).

BACKGROUND: Loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) is one of the most widely planted and commercially important forest tree species in the USA and worldwide, and is an object of intense genomic research. However, whole genome resequencing in loblolly pine is hampered by its large size and complexity and a lack of a good reference. As a valid and more feasible alternative, entire exome sequencing was hence employed to identify the gene-associated single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and to genotype the sampled trees. RESULTS: The exons were captured in the ADEPT2 association mapping population of 375 clonally-propagated loblolly pine trees using NimbleGen oligonucleotide hybridization probes, and then exome-enriched genomic DNA fragments were sequenced using the Illumina HiSeq 2500 platform. Oligonucleotide probes were designed based on 199,723 exons (≈49 Mbp) partitioned from the loblolly pine reference genome (PineRefSeq v. 1.01). The probes covered 90.2 % of the target regions. Capture efficiency was high; on average, 67 % of the sequence reads generated for each tree could be mapped to the capture target regions, and more than 70 % of the captured target bases had at least 10X sequencing depth per tree. A total of 972,720 high quality SNPs were identified after filtering. Among them, 53 % were located in coding regions (CDS), 5 % in 5' or 3' untranslated regions (UTRs) and 42 % in non-target and non-coding regions, such as introns and adjacent intergenic regions collaterally captured. We found that linkage disequilibrium (LD) decayed very rapidly, with the correlation coefficient (r (2)) between pairs of SNPs linked within single scaffolds decaying to half maximum (r (2) = 0.22) within 55 bp, to r (2) = 0.1 within 192 bp, and to r (2) = 0.05 within 451 bp. Population structure analysis using unlinked SNPs demonstrated the presence of two main distinct clusters representing western and eastern parts of the loblolly pine range included in our sample of trees. CONCLUSIONS: The obtained results demonstrated the efficiency of exome capture for genotyping species such as loblolly pine with a large and complex genome. The highly diverse genetic variation reported in this study will be a valuable resource for future genetic and genomic research in loblolly pine.

Decoding the massive genome of loblolly pine using haploid DNA and novel assembly strategies.

BACKGROUND: The size and complexity of conifer genomes has, until now, prevented full genome sequencing and assembly. The large research community and economic importance of loblolly pine, Pinus taeda L., made it an early candidate for reference sequence determination. RESULTS: We develop a novel strategy to sequence the genome of loblolly pine that combines unique aspects of pine reproductive biology and genome assembly methodology. We use a whole genome shotgun approach relying primarily on next generation sequence generated from a single haploid seed megagametophyte from a loblolly pine tree, 20-1010, that has been used in industrial forest tree breeding. The resulting sequence and assembly was used to generate a draft genome spanning 23.2 Gbp and containing 20.1 Gbp with an N50 scaffold size of 66.9 kbp, making it a significant improvement over available conifer genomes. The long scaffold lengths allow the annotation of 50,172 gene models with intron lengths averaging over 2.7 kbp and sometimes exceeding 100 kbp in length. Analysis of orthologous gene sets identifies gene families that may be unique to conifers. We further characterize and expand the existing repeat library based on the de novo analysis of the repetitive content, estimated to encompass 82% of the genome. CONCLUSIONS: In addition to its value as a resource for researchers and breeders, the loblolly pine genome sequence and assembly reported here demonstrates a novel approach to sequencing the large and complex genomes of this important group of plants that can now be widely applied.

Unique features of the loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) megagenome revealed through sequence annotation.

The largest genus in the conifer family Pinaceae is Pinus, with over 100 species. The size and complexity of their genomes (∼20-40 Gb, 2n = 24) have delayed the arrival of a well-annotated reference sequence. In this study, we present the annotation of the first whole-genome shotgun assembly of loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.), which comprises 20.1 Gb of sequence. The MAKER-P annotation pipeline combined evidence-based alignments and ab initio predictions to generate 50,172 gene models, of which 15,653 are classified as high confidence. Clustering these gene models with 13 other plant species resulted in 20,646 gene families, of which 1554 are predicted to be unique to conifers. Among the conifer gene families, 159 are composed exclusively of loblolly pine members. The gene models for loblolly pine have the highest median and mean intron lengths of 24 fully sequenced plant genomes. Conifer genomes are full of repetitive DNA, with the most significant contributions from long-terminal-repeat retrotransposons. In depth analysis of the tandem and interspersed repetitive content yielded a combined estimate of 82%.

The evolutionary genetics of the genes underlying phenotypic associations for loblolly pine (Pinus taeda, Pinaceae).

A primary goal of evolutionary genetics is to discover and explain the genetic basis of fitness-related traits and how this genetic basis evolves within natural populations. Unprecedented technological advances have fueled the discovery of genetic variants associated with ecologically relevant phenotypes in many different life forms, as well as the ability to scan genomes for deviations from selectively neutral models of evolution. Theoretically, the degree of overlap between lists of genomic regions identified using each approach is related to the genetic architecture of fitness-related traits and the strength and type of natural selection molding variation at these traits within natural populations. Here we address for the first time in a plant the degree of overlap between these lists, using patterns of nucleotide diversity and divergence for >7000 unique amplicons described from the extensive expressed sequence tag libraries generated for loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) in combination with the >1000 published genetic associations. We show that loci associated with phenotypic traits are distinct with regard to neutral expectations. Phenotypes measured at the whole plant level (e.g., disease resistance) exhibit an approximately twofold increase in the proportion of adaptive nonsynonymous substitutions over the genome-wide average. As expected for polygenic traits, these signals were apparent only when loci were considered at the level of functional sets. The ramifications of this result are discussed in light of the continued efforts to dissect the genetic basis of quantitative traits.

Association of loblolly pine xylem development gene expression with single-nucleotide polymorphisms.

Variation in the expression of genes with putative roles in wood development was associated with single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) using a population of loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) that included individuals from much of the native range. Association studies were performed using 3938 SNPs and expression data obtained using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) (qRT-PCR) for 106 xylem development genes in 400 clonally replicated loblolly pine individuals. A general linear model (GLM) approach, which takes the underlying population structure into consideration, was used to discover significant associations. After adjustment for multiple testing using a false discovery rate correction, 88 statistically significant associations (Q<0.05) were observed for 80 SNPs with the expression data of 33 xylem development genes. Thirty SNPs caused nonsynonymous mutations, 18 resulted in synonymous mutations, 11 were in 3' untranslated regions (UTRs), 1 was in a 5' UTR and 20 were in introns. Using AraNet, we found that Arabidopsis genes with high similarity to the loblolly pine genes involved in 21 of the 88 statistically significant associations are connected in functional gene networks. Comparisons of gene expression values revealed that in most cases the average expression in plants homozygous for the rare SNP allele was lower than that of plants that were heterozygous or homozygous for the abundant allele. Although there are association studies of SNPs and expression profiles for humans, Arabidopsis and white spruce, to the best of our knowledge, this is the first example of such an association genetic study in pines. Functional validation of these associations will lead to a deeper understanding of the molecular basis of phenotypic differences in wood development among individuals in conifer populations.

The Pinus taeda genome is characterized by diverse and highly diverged repetitive sequences.

BACKGROUND: In today's age of genomic discovery, no attempt has been made to comprehensively sequence a gymnosperm genome. The largest genus in the coniferous family Pinaceae is Pinus, whose 110-120 species have extremely large genomes (c. 20-40 Gb, 2N = 24). The size and complexity of these genomes have prompted much speculation as to the feasibility of completing a conifer genome sequence. Conifer genomes are reputed to be highly repetitive, but there is little information available on the nature and identity of repetitive units in gymnosperms. The pines have extensive genetic resources, with approximately 329000 ESTs from eleven species and genetic maps in eight species, including a dense genetic map of the twelve linkage groups in Pinus taeda. RESULTS: We present here the Sanger sequence and annotation of ten P. taeda BAC clones and Genome Analyzer II whole genome shotgun (WGS) sequences representing 7.5% of the genome. Computational annotation of ten BACs predicts three putative protein-coding genes and at least fifteen likely pseudogenes in nearly one megabase of sequence. We found three conifer-specific LTR retroelements in the BACs, and tentatively identified at least 15 others based on evidence from the distantly related angiosperms. Alignment of WGS sequences to the BACs indicates that 80% of BAC sequences have similar copies (> or = 75% nucleotide identity) elsewhere in the genome, but only 23% have identical copies (99% identity). The three most common repetitive elements in the genome were identified and, when combined, represent less than 5% of the genome. CONCLUSIONS: This study indicates that the majority of repeats in the P. taeda genome are 'novel' and will therefore require additional BAC or genomic sequencing for accurate characterization. The pine genome contains a very large number of diverged and probably defunct repetitive elements. This study also provides new evidence that sequencing a pine genome using a WGS approach is a feasible goal.

Seasonal variation in gene expression for loblolly pines (Pinus taeda) from different geographical regions.

In developing xylem, gene expression levels vary in different genotypes, at different stages of development, throughout a growing season, and in response to stresses. Commercially important characteristics such as wood-specific gravity are known to differ with seed source. For example, when grown on a common site, the specific gravity of Arkansas loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) trees is greater than that of Louisiana loblolly pine, and Texas loblolly pines have a greater specific gravity than loblolly pines from the Atlantic coast. A microarray analysis was performed to examine variation in gene expression among trees from different geographical sources when grown on a common site, and seasonal variation in gene expression in each seed source. We used microarrays containing 2171 expressed sequence tags (ESTs) with putative functions of interest, selected from several loblolly pine xylem partial cDNA libraries and a shoot tip library. Genes with significant variation in expression for each factor were identified. Many genes preferentially expressed in latewood compared with earlywood were for proteins involved in cell wall biosynthesis. Variation in gene expression among trees from the two seed sources in each growing season suggests that there may be more differences between South Arkansas trees and South Louisiana trees in latewood than in earlywood. Variation in gene expression among trees from different regions may reflect adaptation to different environments.

An arabinogalactan protein associated with secondary cell wall formation in differentiating xylem of loblolly pine.

Arabinogalactan proteins (AGPs) are abundant plant proteoglycans implicated in plant growth and development. Here, we report the genetic characterization, partial purification and immunolocalization of a classical AGP (PtaAGP6, accession number AF101785) in loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.). A PtaAGP6 full-length cDNA clone was expressed in bacteria. PtaAGP6 resembles tomato LeAGP-1 and Arabidopsis AtAGP17-19 in that they all possess a subdomain composed of basic amino acids. The accessibility of this domain in the glycoprotein makes it possible to label the PtaAGP6 epitopes on the cell surface or in the cell wall with polyclonal antibodies raised against this subdomain. The antibodies recognize the peptide of the basic subdomain and bind to the intact protein molecule. A soluble protein-containing fraction was purified from the differentiating xylem of pine trees by using beta-glucosyl Yariv reagent (beta-glcY) and was recognized by antibodies against the basic subdomain. Immunolocalization studies showed that the PtaAGP6 epitopes are restricted to a file of cells that just precede secondary cell wall thickening, suggesting roles in xylem differentiation and wood formation. The location of apparent labeling of the PtaAGP6 epitopes is separated from the location of lignin deposition. Multiple single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were detected in EST variants. Denaturing HPLC analysis of PCR products suggests that PtaAGP6 is encoded by a single gene. Mobility variation in denaturing gel electrophoresis was used to map PtaAGP6 SNPs to a site on linkage group 5.