Identification of miRNAs and Their Target Genes in Taraxacum spp

Abstract

MicroRNAs are endogenous noncoding RNA that play vital roles in all plant cellular metabolic processes by mediating target gene expression. To date, miRNAs in Taraxacum spp., which is an important industrial plant, have remained largely unknown. In the present study, 970 miRNAs from 399 families were identified in Taraxacum spp by conducting computational approaches. The most frequent miRNAs in Taraxacum spp was miR5021. According to the KEGG results, miR5021, miR838, and miR1533 are related to the terpene biosynthesis pathway, while miR5015b, and miR1436 are involved in the starch and sucrose biosynthesis pathways. Quantitative real-time PCR assay was performed to validate the expression levels of five predicted miRNAs and 3-Hydroxy-3-Methylglutaryl Coenzyme A Reductase (HMGCR) and invertase as the target genes. Results indicated that the highest relative expression of miR1533 and miR1436 occurred in the flower, while the highest transcripts levels of miR5015b were observed in the stem. In addition, the higher relative expression level of the miR5021 and miR838 was consistent with the lower expression level of the HMGCR gene in all tissue, suggesting that miR5021 and miR838 are involved in regulating HMGCR gene expression. Since mevalonate pathway is the main source of isopentenyl pyrophosphate, which is used in the synthesis of rubber, miR5021 and miR838 play an important role in the production of rubber by regulating the expression of HMGCR enzyme. These findings will accelerate future perspective studies on the regulatory mechanisms of miRNAs in Taraxacum koksaghyz.

Promising approaches for simultaneous enhancement of medicinally significant benzylisoquinoline alkaloids in opium poppy

“…In fact, miRNAs connect with complementary sequences present in their target mRNAs, making transcripts vulnerable to cleavage by endonucleases and consequently hampering their translation ( Brodersen et al., 2008 ). miRNAs involved in the growth and development, biotic and abiotic responses, signal transduction, cell differentiation and dedifferentiation, polarity, carbohydrate metabolism, protein conformation, compartmentalization, degradation, and gene transcription have been discovered and functionally characterized in opium poppy ( Unver et al., 2010 ; Boke et al., 2015 ; Karimi et al., 2017 ). Furthermore, it has been documented that miRNAs can modulate BIA biosynthesis in poppy plants ( Boke et al., 2015 ; Sabzehzari and Naghavi, 2019 ).…”

“…transcription have been discovered and functionally characterized in poppy (Unver et al, 2010;Boke et al, 2015;Karimi et al, 2017). Furthermore, it has been documented that miRNAs can modulate BIA biosynthesis in poppy plants (Boke et al, 2015;Sabzehzari and Naghavi, 2019).…”

Effect of drought stress on natural rubber biosynthesis and quality in Taraxacum kok-saghyz roots

“…Among rubber-producing species known to synthesize high molecular weight rubber, Parthenium argentatum (also called guayule), and Taraxacum kok-saghyz (also known as rubber dandelion, TK, TKS) have received growing attention in the past few years, as potential commercial sources of NR [5][6][7]. These species provide a sustainable and renewable source of NR that offers an alternative to Hevea rubber in semi-arid temperate regions, respectively, hence reducing dependency tropical rubber [8]. Guayule rubber is especially attractive as it is hypoallergenic, unlike normal Hevea rubber which can trigger allergic reactions in some individuals [9].…”

Identification of miRNAs and their targets in two Taraxacum species with contrasting rubber-producing ability

“…miR2161 regulates the biosynthesis of benzylisoquinoline alkaloids in opium poppy plants by targeting mRNA encoding enzymes such as S-adenosyl-L-methionine, 30-hydroxy-N-methylcoclaurine, and 40-O-methyltransferase (Gupta et al, 2017). Recently, a total of 574 and 396 miRNAs were predicted, respectively, in Tk and T. officinale by homologous retrieval using the publicly available RNA-seq and EST data of these two Taraxacum species (Karimi et al, 2022). Of these miRNAs, miR5021, miR838 and miR1533 were speculated by the KEGG analysis to participate in the terpene biosynthesis (Karimi et al, 2022).…”

“…Recently, a total of 574 and 396 miRNAs were predicted, respectively, in Tk and T. officinale by homologous retrieval using the publicly available RNA-seq and EST data of these two Taraxacum species (Karimi et al, 2022). Of these miRNAs, miR5021, miR838 and miR1533 were speculated by the KEGG analysis to participate in the terpene biosynthesis (Karimi et al, 2022). So far, the miRNAs and their targets have never been investigated by targeted sequencing analysis in Taraxacum and the roles of miRNA-target modules in the regulation of rubber biosynthesis are not known.…”