The Ma gene for complete-spectrum resistance to Meloidogyne species in Prunus is a TNL with a huge repeated C-terminal post-LRR region.

Root-knot nematode (RKN) Meloidogyne species are major polyphagous pests of most crops worldwide, and cultivars with durable resistance are urgently needed because of nematicide bans. The Ma gene from the Myrobalan plum (Prunus cerasifera) confers complete-spectrum, heat-stable, and high-level resistance to RKN, which is remarkable in comparison with the Mi-1 gene from tomato (Solanum lycopersicum), the sole RKN resistance gene cloned. We report here the positional cloning and the functional validation of the Ma locus present at the heterozygous state in the P.2175 accession. High-resolution mapping totaling over 3,000 segregants reduced the Ma locus interval to a 32-kb cluster of three Toll/Interleukin1 Receptor-Nucleotide Binding Site-Leucine-Rich Repeat (LRR) genes (TNL1-TNL3), including a pseudogene (TNL2) and a truncated gene (TNL3). The sole complete gene in this interval (TNL1) was validated as Ma, as it conferred the same complete-spectrum and high-level resistance (as in P.2175) using its genomic sequence and native promoter region in Agrobacterium rhizogenes-transformed hairy roots and composite plants. The full-length cDNA (2,048 amino acids) of Ma is the longest of all Resistance genes cloned to date. Its TNL structure is completed by a huge post-LRR (PL) sequence (1,088 amino acids) comprising five repeated carboxyl-terminal PL exons with two conserved motifs. The amino-terminal region (213 amino acids) of the LRR exon is conserved between alleles and contrasts with the high interallelic polymorphisms of its distal region (111 amino acids) and of PL domains. The Ma gene highlights the importance of these uncharacterized PL domains, which may be involved in pathogen recognition through the decoy hypothesis or in nuclear signaling.

cDNA-AFLP-based genetical genomics in cotton fibers.

Genetical genomics, or genetic analysis applied to gene expression data, has not been widely used in plants. We used quantitative cDNA-AFLP to monitor the variation in the expression level of cotton fiber transcripts among a population of inter-specific Gossypium hirsutum × G. barbadense recombinant inbred lines (RILs). Two key fiber developmental stages, elongation (10 days post anthesis, dpa), and secondary cell wall thickening (22 dpa), were studied. Normalized intensity ratios of 3,263 and 1,201 transcript-derived fragments (TDFs) segregating over 88 RILs were analyzed for quantitative trait loci (QTL) mapping for the 10 and 22 dpa fibers, respectively. Two-thirds of all TDFs mapped between 1 and 6 eQTLs (LOD > 3.5). Chromosome 21 had a higher density of eQTLs than other chromosomes in both data sets and, within chromosomes, hotspots of presumably trans-acting eQTLs were identified. The eQTL hotspots were compared to the location of phenotypic QTLs for fiber characteristics among the RILs, and several cases of co-localization were detected. Quantitative RT-PCR for 15 sequenced TDFs showed that 3 TDFs had at least one eQTL at a similar location to those identified by cDNA-AFLP, while 3 other TDFs mapped an eQTL at a similar location but with opposite additive effect. In conclusion, cDNA-AFLP proved to be a cost-effective and highly transferable platform for genome-wide and population-wide gene expression profiling. Because TDFs are anonymous, further validation and interpretation (in silico analysis, qPCR gene profiling) of the eQTL and eQTL hotspots will be facilitated by the increasing availability of cDNA and genomic sequence resources in cotton.

Agrobacterium rhizogenes-mediated transformation of Prunus as an alternative for gene functional analysis in hairy-roots and composite plants.

Resistant rootstocks offer an alternative to pesticides for the control of soil pests. In Prunus spp., resistance loci to root-knot nematodes (RKN) have been mapped and a transformation method is needed to validate candidate genes. Our efforts have focused on the generation of transformed hairy-roots and composite plants appropriate for nematode infection assays. An efficient and reliable method using the A4R strain of Agrobacterium rhizogenes for the transformation of Prunus roots with an Egfp reporter gene is given. The rooting efficiency, depending on the genotypes, was maximal for the interspecific hybrid 253 (Myrobalan plum × almond-peach), susceptible to RKN, that was retained for subsequent studies. From the agro-inoculated cuttings, 72% produced roots, mainly at the basal section of the stem. Transformed roots were screened by microscope detection of Egfp fluorescence and molecular analyses of the integration of the transgene. The absence of residual agrobacteria in the plants was checked by the non-amplification of the chromosomal gene chvH. Egfp was expressed visually in 76% of the rooted plants. Isolated hairy roots in Petri dishes and composite plants (transformed roots and non-transformed aerial part) in soil containers were inoculated with the RKN Meloidogyne incognita. In both cases, root transformation did not affect the ability of the nematodes to develop in the root tissues. Our results showed that isolated hairy-roots can be used to validate candidate genes and the conditions in which composite plants offer a complementary system for studying the function of root genes in physiological conditions of whole plants are discussed.

Meta-analysis of cotton fiber quality QTLs across diverse environments in a Gossypium hirsutum x G. barbadense RIL population.

BACKGROUND: Cotton fibers (produced by Gossypium species) are the premier natural fibers for textile production. The two tetraploid species, G. barbadense (Gb) and G. hirsutum (Gh), differ significantly in their fiber properties, the former having much longer, finer and stronger fibers that are highly prized. A better understanding of the genetics and underlying biological causes of these differences will aid further improvement of cotton quality through breeding and biotechnology. We evaluated an inter-specific Gh x Gb recombinant inbred line (RIL) population for fiber characteristics in 11 independent experiments under field and glasshouse conditions. Sites were located on 4 continents and 5 countries and some locations were analyzed over multiple years. RESULTS: The RIL population displayed a large variability for all major fiber traits. QTL analyses were performed on a per-site basis by composite interval mapping. Among the 651 putative QTLs (LOD > 2), 167 had a LOD exceeding permutation based thresholds. Coincidence in QTL location across data sets was assessed for the fiber trait categories strength, elongation, length, length uniformity, fineness/maturity, and color. A meta-analysis of more than a thousand putative QTLs was conducted with MetaQTL software to integrate QTL data from the RIL and 3 backcross populations (from the same parents) and to compare them with the literature. Although the global level of congruence across experiments and populations was generally moderate, the QTL clustering was possible for 30 trait x chromosome combinations (5 traits in 19 different chromosomes) where an effective co-localization of unidirectional (similar sign of additivity) QTLs from at least 5 different data sets was observed. Most consistent meta-clusters were identified for fiber color on chromosomes c6, c8 and c25, fineness on c15, and fiber length on c3. CONCLUSIONS: Meta-analysis provided a reliable means of integrating phenotypic and genetic mapping data across multiple populations and environments for complex fiber traits. The consistent chromosomal regions contributing to fiber quality traits constitute good candidates for the further dissection of the genetic and genomic factors underlying important fiber characteristics, and for marker-assisted selection.

Development of a 63K SNP Array for Cotton and High-Density Mapping of Intraspecific and Interspecific Populations of Gossypium spp.

High-throughput genotyping arrays provide a standardized resource for plant breeding communities that are useful for a breadth of applications including high-density genetic mapping, genome-wide association studies (GWAS), genomic selection (GS), complex trait dissection, and studying patterns of genomic diversity among cultivars and wild accessions. We have developed the CottonSNP63K, an Illumina Infinium array containing assays for 45,104 putative intraspecific single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers for use within the cultivated cotton species Gossypium hirsutum L. and 17,954 putative interspecific SNP markers for use with crosses of other cotton species with G. hirsutum. The SNPs on the array were developed from 13 different discovery sets that represent a diverse range of G. hirsutum germplasm and five other species: G. barbadense L., G. tomentosum Nuttal × Seemann, G. mustelinum Miers × Watt, G. armourianum Kearny, and G. longicalyx J.B. Hutchinson and Lee. The array was validated with 1,156 samples to generate cluster positions to facilitate automated analysis of 38,822 polymorphic markers. Two high-density genetic maps containing a total of 22,829 SNPs were generated for two F2 mapping populations, one intraspecific and one interspecific, and 3,533 SNP markers were co-occurring in both maps. The produced intraspecific genetic map is the first saturated map that associates into 26 linkage groups corresponding to the number of cotton chromosomes for a cross between two G. hirsutum lines. The linkage maps were shown to have high levels of collinearity to the JGI G. raimondii Ulbrich reference genome sequence. The CottonSNP63K array, cluster file and associated marker sequences constitute a major new resource for the global cotton research community.

Deep sequencing reveals differences in the transcriptional landscapes of fibers from two cultivated species of cotton.

Cotton (Gossypium) fiber is the most prevalent natural product used in the textile industry. The two major cultivated species, G. hirsutum (Gh) and G. barbadense (Gb), are allotetraploids with contrasting fiber quality properties. To better understand the molecular basis for their fiber differences, EST pyrosequencing was used to document the fiber transcriptomes at two key development stages, 10 days post anthesis (dpa), representing the peak of fiber elongation, and 22 dpa, representing the transition to secondary cell wall synthesis. The 617,000 high quality reads (89% of the total 692,000 reads) from 4 libraries were assembled into 46,072 unigenes, comprising 38,297 contigs and 7,775 singletons. Functional annotation of the unigenes together with comparative digital gene expression (DGE) revealed a diverse set of functions and processes that were partly linked to specific fiber stages. Globally, 2,770 contigs (7%) showed differential expression (>2-fold) between 10 and 22 dpa (irrespective of genotype), with 70% more highly expressed at 10 dpa, while 2,248 (6%) were differentially expressed between the genotypes (irrespective of stage). The most significant genes with differential DGE at 10 dpa included expansins and lipid transfer proteins (higher in Gb), while at 22 dpa tubulins, cellulose, and sucrose synthases showed higher expression in Gb. DGE was compared with expression data of 10 dpa-old fibers from Affymetrix microarrays. Among 543 contigs showing differential expression on both platforms, 74% were consistent in being either over-expressed in Gh (242 genes) or in Gb (161 genes). Furthermore, the unigene set served to identify 339 new SSRs and close to 21,000 inter-genotypic SNPs. Subsets of 88 SSRs and 48 SNPs were validated through mapping and added 65 new loci to a RIL genetic map. The new set of fiber ESTs and the gene-based markers complement existing available resources useful in basic and applied research for crop improvement in cotton.