Omics in Forest Trees Ecology and Its Applications to Genetic Resources Conservation and Breeding

A special issue of Forests (ISSN 1999-4907). This special issue belongs to the section "Genetics and Molecular Biology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (1 September 2022) | Viewed by 2185

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Evolutionary Biology Center, Department of Ecology and Genetics, Plant Ecology and Evolution, Uppsala University and Science for Life Laboratory, Uppsala, Sweden
Interests: genomics of local adaptation in forest trees with a focus on structural rearrangement

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Genome diversity is the result of complex interplay between demographic history and adaptation to ever-changing environments. Forests are particularly affected by rapid climatic changes because of the longevity and low migration ability of their keystone tree species. Understanding the relationships between the (epi)-genomic level and higher levels of organization (e.g., RNA and macro-phenotype) with the environment is of paramount importance in order to understand, or even predict and anticipate, the impact of environmental change on forest trees and therefore protect the resource they represent.

In the last decade, the development of next-generation sequencing technologies has opened a wealth of new perspectives with both theoretical and practical implications. To name a few, it is now possible to i) quantify genome-wide responses to natural selection, ii) describe the genetic architecture of adaptations and, to some extent, iii) predict population/species responses to climate change based on current genetic diversity. The identification of conservation units and conservation strategies is now informed by genetic data, and genomic selection and phenotypic predictions are widely used in tree breeding programs. In this issue, we welcome studies investigating such questions using -omics data (e.g., SNPs, structural variants, epigenetics, RNA), possibly coupled with phenotypic or ecological data. Simulation, modeling-based, and methods-focused studies are also welcome.

Prof. Dr. Pascal Milesi
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • genomics
  • transcriptomics
  • epigenomics
  • forest trees
  • genomic selection and breeding
  • conservation
  • genetic architecture of adaptation
  • climate change
  • ecology
  • genotype–phenotype–environment relationships
  • integrative biology
  • landscape genomics
  • genetic off-set predictions

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

19 pages, 3957 KiB  
Article
Identification and Functional Analysis of LncRNAs in Response to Seed Aging in Metasequoia glyptostroboides by Third Generation Sequencing Technology
by Yongjian Luo, Jingyu Le, Yixin Zhang, Ru Wang, Qing Li, Xinxiong Lu, Jun Liu and Zhijun Deng
Forests 2022, 13(10), 1579; https://doi.org/10.3390/f13101579 - 27 Sep 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1676
Abstract
The seeds of Metasequia glyptostroboides Hu et Cheng, an endangered species, are susceptible to aging, making natural population renewal difficult and increasing the risk of extinction. LncRNAs play important roles in plant growth and development and biotic and abiotic stress responses, but the [...] Read more.
The seeds of Metasequia glyptostroboides Hu et Cheng, an endangered species, are susceptible to aging, making natural population renewal difficult and increasing the risk of extinction. LncRNAs play important roles in plant growth and development and biotic and abiotic stress responses, but the functions of lncRNAs in the aging process of M. glyptostroboides seeds are still unclear. In this study, we used single molecule real-time (SMRT) sequencing technology in combination with Illumina RNA-seq to analyze lncRNA changes during M. glyptostroboides seed aging. We identified 403 intergenic lncRNAs (lincRNAs), 29 intronic lncRNAs, and 25 antisense lncRNAs; screened 9000 differentially expressed mRNAs (DEGs) and 128 differentially expressed lncRNAs (DELs); and predicted 844 cis-target genes and 8098 trans-target genes. GO and KEGG functional annotation of target genes revealed that the regulation of the reactive oxygen species metabolic process, protein processing in the endoplasmic reticulum, and the MAPK signaling pathway and other pathways were significantly enriched, showing a high correlation with the mRNA enrichment results. In addition, we constructed a ceRNA network consisting of 18 lncRNAs, 38 miRNAs, and 69 mRNAs, in which some miRNAs and mRNAs related to seed aging were found. Among them, miR167(a,b,c,d) may compete with lncRNA_00185, which is related to plant aging, to regulate the expression of the RCD1(Radical-induced Cell Death1) gene, thus promoting the balance of seed reactive oxygen species and enhancing seed-aging resistance. These results will have significant reference value in elucidating the molecular mechanism of the seed aging of M. glyptostroboides sequoia, improving the storage capacity for crop seeds, and protecting rare germplasm resources. Full article
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