Integrated Analysis of miRNAs Associated With Sugarcane Responses to Low-Potassium Stress

Abstract

Sugarcane is among the most important global crops and a key bioenergy source. Sugarcane production is restricted by limited levels of available soil potassium (K+). The ability of plants to respond to stressors can be regulated by a range of microRNAs (miRNAs). However, there have been few studies regarding the roles of miRNAs in the regulation of sugarcane responses to K+-deficiency. To understand how these non-coding RNAs may influence sugarcane responses to low-K+ stress, we conducted expression profiling of miRNAs in sugarcane roots under low-K+ conditions via high-throughput sequencing. This approach led to the identification of 324 and 42 known and novel miRNAs, respectively, of which 36 were found to be differentially expressed miRNAs (DEMs) under low-K+ conditions. These results also suggested that miR156-x/z and miR171-x are involved in these responses as potential regulators of lateral root formation and the ethylene signaling pathway, respectively. A total of 705 putative targets of these DEMs were further identified through bioinformatics predictions and degradome analyses, and GO and KEGG enrichment analyses revealed these target mRNAs to be enriched for catalytic activity, binding functions, metabolic processes, plant hormone signal transduction, and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling. In summary, these data provide an overview of the roles of miRNAs in the regulation of sugarcane response to low-K+ conditions.

In Silico Identification of Sugarcane Genome-Encoded MicroRNAs Targeting Sugarcane Mosaic Virus

“…RNAibased amiRNA constructs have been used in research to induce antiviral resistance in plants against plant viruses such as tomato [25,26], cucumber [27], rice [28], and cotton [29]. Mature miRNAs in the sugarcane genome have been predicted, identified, isolated, analyzed, and validated to evaluate host-virus interactions and gene regulation, and they have been associated with abiotic and biotic stresses [30][31][32][33][34][35][36][37][38][39][40]. Recently, experimental validations of 35 conserved mature locus-derived high-confidence sof-miRNAs/ssp-miRNAs in the sugarcane genome and further depositions in the miRBase database were reported.…”

The In Silico Sugarcane Genome-Encoded MicroRNA and Target Network Prediction for Targeting the SCMV

“…RNAi-based amiRNA construct has been deployed in research to create antiviral resistance in plants against plant viral species such as tomato [25,26], cucumber [27], rice [28] and cotton [29]. Mature miRNAs in sugarcane genome have been predicted, identified, isolated, analyzed, and validated for evaluation of host-virus interactions, gene regulation and was associated with abiotic and biotic stresses [30][31][32][33][34][35][36][37][38][39][40]. Recently, experimental validation of 35 conserved mature sugarcane genome-encoded, high-confidence sof-miRNAs/ssp-miRNAs and further deposition in the miRBase database were reported.…”

The In Silico Sugarcane Genome-Encoded MicroRNA and Target Network Prediction for Targeting the SCMV

“…RNAi-based amiRNA construct has been deployed in research to create antiviral resistance in plants against plant viral species such as tomato [25,26], cucumber [27], rice [28] and cotton [29]. Mature miRNAs in sugarcane genome have been predicted, identified, isolated, analyzed, and validated for evaluation of host-virus interactions, gene regulation and was associated with abiotic and biotic stresses [30][31][32][33][34][35][36][37][38][39][40]. Recently, experimental validation of 35 conserved mature sugarcane genome-encoded, high-confidence sof-miRNAs/ssp-miRNAs and further deposition in the miRBase database were reported.…”