A multifaceted comparison between the fruit-abscission and fruit-retention cultivars in ornamental crabapple

Abstract

The ornamental crabapple is a multipurpose landscaping tree that bears brilliant fruit throughout the winter. However, whether or not its fruit persists after maturation is specifically correlated to cultivar characteristics. In this work, we screened two different types that display fruit-retention (“Donald Wyman,” “Red Jewel,” and “Sugar Tyme”) and fruit-abscission (“Radiant” and “Flame”) in Northern China across the whole winter using multi-year successional records. Fruit-abscission was determined predominantly by the abscission zone established at the base of the pedicel, regardless of fruit size and pedicel length, according to the results of the comparative research. The primary physiological rationale was the accumulation of hydrolases activity (pectinesterase, cellulase, polygalacturonase, and β-glucosidase). Comparative transcriptomics further identified a number of upregulated DEGs involved in the synthesis pathways of canonical phytohormones, such as ethylene, jasmonic acid, abscisic acid, and cytokinin, as well as 12 transcription factors linked in downstream signaling in fruit-abscission cultivars. Finally, a model incorporating multi-layered modulation was proposed for the fruit abscission of ornamental crabapple. This study will serve as the foundation for the development of fruit-viewing crabapples that have an extended ornamental lifetime.

Chromosomal level genome assemblies of two Malus crabapple cultivars Flame and Royalty

“…Malus hybrid ‘Flame’ (‘Flame’) and Malus hybrid ‘Royalty’ (‘Royalty’) are representative ornamental crabapples of the genus Malus in the rose family ( Rosaceae ). ‘Flame’ belongs to the ever-green leaf category, with green leaves and white flowers, while ‘Royalty’ belongs to the category of ever-red leaf, with purple-red leaves, flowers and fruits, and the fruit is fetal red 1 . ‘Royalty’ and ‘Flame’ crabapples are rich in flavonoids 2 .…”

Transcriptomic and physiological analysis provide new insight into seed shattering mechanism in Pennisetum alopecuroides ‘Liqiu’

“…The activation of abscission requires complex changes at the molecular and biochemical levels, with plant hormones playing a key role in conveying the abscission signal (Taylor and Whitelaw 2001). Based on their functions, hormones can be classi ed into two categories: those that inhibit growth, promote aging, and abscission, and those that promote growth and inhibit abscission (Wang et al 2022). Previous studies suggest that auxin may play a dominant role in regulating dehiscence.…”

“…CTKs can delay leaf abscission and keep leaves on the plant for a longer time(Zavaleta-Mancera et al 1999). In the process of petal abscission in rose owers and crabapple fruit, genes encoding CTKs were upregulated(Singh et al 2019;Wang et al 2022). This study revealed differential expression of cytokinin synthesis enzyme UGT and cytokinin signal transduction genes encoding B-ARR and A-ARR (Fig.6c), indicating that cytokinins may play an important role in the seed abscission process…”

Transcriptome differential expression analysis of defoliation of two different lemon varieties

“…The direct cause of plant organ abscission is the degradation of the cell wall, which in turn is due to several associated cellulases ( Wang et al, 2023 ; Li et al, 2019 ), pectinases ( Bai et al, 2023 ), peroxidases ( Djanaguiraman et al, 2010 ), polygalacturonases ( Hu et al, 2023 ; He et al, 2023 ; Bonghi et al, 1992 ), xyloglucan endoglucan transglucosylase/hydrolyzing enzymes ( Wang et al, 2022 ; Niederhuth, Patharkar & Walker, 2013 ), and extender proteins that lead to the disruption of cell-to-cell adhesion ( Patharkar & Walker, 2018 ; Botton & Ruperti, 2019 ).…”