Analysis of basic leucine zipper genes and their expression during bud dormancy in peach (Prunus persica).

Dormancy is a biological characteristic developed to resist the cold conditions in winter. The bZIP transcription factors are present exclusively in eukaryotes and have been identified and classified in many species. bZIP proteins are known to regulate numerous biological processes, however, the role of bZIP in bud dodormancy has not been studied extensively. In total, 50 PpbZIP transcription factor-encoding genes were identified and categorized them into 10 groups (A-I and S). Similar intron/exon structures, additional conserved motifs, and DNA-binding site specificity supported our classification scheme. Additionally, chromosomal distribution and collinearity analyses suggested that expansion of the PpbZIP transcription factor family was due to segment/chromosomal duplications. We also predicted the dimerization properties based on characteristic features of the leucine zipper and classified PpbZIP proteins into 23 subfamilies. Furthermore, qRT-PCR results indicated that PpbZIPs genes may be involved in regulating dormancy. The same gene of different species might participate in different regulating networks through interactions with specific partners. Our expression profiling results complemented the microarray data, suggesting that co-expression patterns of bZIP transcription factors during dormancy differed among deciduous fruit trees. Our findings further clarify the molecular characteristics of the PpbZIP transcription factor family, including potential gene functions during dormancy. This information may facilitate further research on the evolutionary history and biological functions of bZIP proteins in peach and other rosaceae plants.

[Responses of chilling resistance to photoperiodic dormancy induction in peach leaf.] / æ¡ƒå¶ç‰‡æŠ—å†·æ€§å¯¹å ‰å‘¨æœŸè¯±å¯¼ä¼‘çœ çš„å“åº”.

Taking 6-year-old "Chunjie" peach as test material, and the peach in natural condition as the control, this paper investigated induced effects of long-day and short-day photoperiod on dormancy and responses of chilling resistance to photoperiodic induction during dormancy induction process. The results showed that the trees of long-day and short-day treatments could both enter dormancy induction under the gradually decreasing temperature. The long-day treatment was 1 week later than the control, while the short-day treatment was 1 week earlier. The total water content and free water content both decreased, and the bound water content and the ratio of bound water/total water increased with the development of dormancy. SOD and CAT activities changed as unimodal curve during dormancy induction, and the peak values appeared at the late stage of dormancy induction, POD activity decreased rapidly after the start of dormancy induction, and rebounded to form a small peak at the late stage of dormancy induction. The soluble protein content declined, proline and malonaldehyde (MDA) increased continuously, and the injury rate increased. Long-day could increase SOD and CAT activities and proline content, alleviate the decline of POD activity and soluble protein content, and reduce the growth rate of MDA and injury rate, which indicated leaf damage was lighter in long-day treatment than in the control. However, they changed differently under short-day treatment, especially the leaf injury rate was higher than the control, exhibiting a lower chilling resistance. Prolonging illumination was suggested to improve leaf chilling resistance in practical production if environmental temperature permitted.

[Effects of photoperiod on photosynthesis and PSII performance in peach during dormancy induction].

Long-day and short-day photoperiods were set artificially, with natural condition as the control, to examine photosynthetic parameters and chlorophyll fluorescence transient kinetics of 6-year-old 'Chunjie' peach cultivar (Prunus persica cv. Chunjie), and to investigate the effects of photoperiod on photosynthesis of the northern deciduous fruit trees. The tree advanced into the dormancy induction period under the short-day condition, and delayed under the long-day condition. In the dormancy induction period, the leaf net photosynthetic rate (Pn) and stomatal conductance (g(s)) decreased, and the intercellular CO2 concentration (Ci) increased, suggesting that the Pn decreased because of non-stomatal limitation. Maximum quantum yield for primary photochemistry (PhiPo, or Fv/Fm), potential activity (Fv/Fo), probability that a trapped exciton moved an electron into the electron transport chain beyond Q(A)-(Psi(o)) and performance index on absorption basis (Pl(ABS)) decreased in the dormancy induction period, suggesting that the electron transport capacity of photosynthetic electron transport chain was inhibited, possibly due to the damage to downstream electron transport chain (after Q(A)- acceptor) of PS II reaction center. Long-day photoperiod improved Pn in the dormancy induction period, and reduced the range of decline in PI(ABS) and the injured degree of photosystem. Short-day photoperiod deepened and accelerated the damage to photosynthetic apparatus significantly. The induced effect of photoperiod was associated with the dormancy processes.

[Effects of high temperature and hydrogen cyanamide on dormant nectarine's floral bud respiratory metabolism].

Taking 3-year old potted 'Shuguang' nectarine (Prunus persica var. nectariana cv. Shuguang) as test material, this paper studied the effects of high temperature (50 degrees C, HT) and hydrogen cyanamide (HC) on the floral bud respiratory metabolism of the tree during its natural dormancy. Both HT and HC could break the natural dormancy of the tree, and lead to a significant decrease in the respiratory metabolism of floral buds for several hours. The main respiratory pathways, tricarboxylic acid cycle (TCA) and pentose phosphate pathway (PPP), were affected. For the buds not received dormancy-breaking treatments, both the TCA and the PPP decreased, while treating with HT and HC induced a rapid recovery of PPP after the early respiratory attenuation. HT also induced the recovery of TCA, but HC did not show this effect in 96 hours. Therefore, respiratory attenuation and the following PPP activation could be the important part in the floral bud respiratory mechanism of HT- and HC-induced dormancy release.

[Transcriptional levels of AQPs genes in peach floral buds during dormancy].

Taking the floral buds of 10 years old field-cultivated and 3 years old potted nectarine (Prunus persica var. nectarine cv. Shuguang) as test materials, and by the method of real-time quantitative PCR, this paper studied the expressions of the AQPs genes deltaTIP1 and PIP1; 1 during dormancy and dormancy-release (September 15, 2009-January 15, 2010) and the transcriptional levels of the genes under low temperature stress. Within the period of dormancy and dormancy-release, the transcriptional level of PIP1; 1 presented a persistent increasing trend, and the high level expression of PIP1; 1 in January could be related to the efflux of water through cytoplasma membrane and vacuolar membrane, which protected the bud cells from ice crystal injuries. The contents of soluble sugar, soluble protein, and proline in the bud cells all peaked in January, which prevented the excessive water loss from the cells. After 2 weeks of low temperature treatment, the PIP1; 1 had a high level expression, indicating that it was a cold-induced gene. The transcriptional level of deltaTIP1 fluctuated during dormancy, and increased significantly during dormancy-release, which might be induced by the dormancy-release signals in buds and the resumption of plant activity. After 2 weeks of low temperature treatment, the expression level of deltaTIP1 had no increase, indicating that deltaTIP1 was not a cold-induced gene.