The Chromosome-Scale Assembly of the Curcuma alismatifolia Genome Provides Insight Into Anthocyanin and Terpenoid Biosynthesis.

Curcuma alismatifolia, a bulbous flower known for its showy bracts, is widely used around the world as a cut flower, potted, and garden plant. Besides its ornamental value, this species is rich in terpenoid metabolites and could serve as a resource for essential oils. Here, we report a chromosome-level genome assembly of C. alismatifolia and describe its biosynthetic pathways for anthocyanins and terpenoids. This high-quality, assembled genome size is 991.3 Mb with a scaffold N50 value of 56.7 Mb. Evolutionary analysis of the genome suggests that C. alismatifolia diverged from Zingiber officinale about 9.7 million years ago, after it underwent a whole-genome duplication. Transcriptome analysis was performed on bracts at five developmental stages. Nine highly expressed genes were identified, encoding for six enzymes downstream of the anthocyanin biosynthetic pathway. Of these, one gene encoding F3'5'H might be a key node in the regulation of bract color formation. Co-expression network analysis showed that MYB, bHLH, NAC, and ERF transcription factors collectively regulated color formation in the bracts. Characterization of terpenoid biosynthesis genes revealed their dispersal and tandem duplications, both of which contributed greatly to the increase in the number of terpene synthase genes in C. alismatifolia, especially to species-specific expansion of sesquiterpene synthase genes. This work facilitates understanding of genetic basis of anthocyanin and terpenoid biosynthesis and could accelerate the selective breeding of C. alismatifolia varieties with higher ornamental and medicinal value.

The chloroplast genome of the moss Haplocladium microphyllum, first in family Thuidiaceae.

Bryophytes are a highly diverse group containing more than 12,800 species. Haplocladium microphyllum is in a large moss belonging to the family Thuidiaceae. We report the complete chloroplast (124,478 bp) genome sequence of H. microphyllum, it includes a pair of inverted repeat regions (IRs, 9727 bp), one large single-copy (LSC, 86,528 bp) region, and one small single-copy (SSC, 18,496 bp) region. Besides, the complete chloroplast genome contains 134 genes in total, including 88 protein-coding genes, 38 tRNA genes, and eight rRNA genes. Phylogenetic analysis showed that H. microphyllum has the closest relationship with Sanionia uncinata in Amblystegiaceae. Our study lays a foundation for further research like speciation of this species and the phylogeny of the Thuidiaceae family.

Annual growth cycle observation, hybridization and forcing culture for improving the ornamental application of Paeonia lactiflora Pall. in the low-latitude regions.

Expanding the southern range of herbaceous peony (Paeonia lactiflora Pall.) is a meaningful and worthwhile horticultural endeavor in the Northern Hemisphere. However, high temperatures in winter seriously hinder the bud dormancy release and flowering of peony in the more southern areas of subtropical and tropical regions. Resource introduction and hybridization can contribute to creating new cultivars with high adaptability in a warmer winter climate. In this study, three representative cultivars of P. lactiflora were screened for flowering capabilities and their annual growth cycles were observed to provide information needed for hybridization. Among these three cultivars, 'Hang Baishao' is the best adapted cultivar for southern growing regions and is unique in its ability to thrive in southern areas of N 30°00'. Pollen viability of 'Hang Baishao' was 55.60% based on five measuring methods, which makes it an excellent male parent in hybridization. Hybrid plants among these three cultivars grew well, but all of their flower buds aborted. Additionally, the ability of three growth regulators that advance the flowering of 'Hang Baishao' to promote an indoor cultivation strategy for improving peony application as a potted or cut-flower plant was tested. 5-azacytidine could impact the growth of 'Hang Baishao' and induce dwarfism and small flowers but not advance the flowering time. Gibberellin A3 promoted the sprouting and growth significantly, but all plants eventually withered. Chilling at 0-4°C for four weeks and irrigation with 300 mg/L humic acid was the optimal combination used to hasten flowering and ensure flowering quality simultaneously. These results can lay the foundation for future studies on the chilling requirement trait, bud dormancy release and key functional gene exploration of herbaceous peony. Additionally, this study can also provide guidance for expanding the range of economically important plants with the winter dormancy trait to the low-latitude regions.