Integrated Transcriptome and Metabolome Analyses Provide Insights into the Coloring Mechanism of Dark-red and Yellow Fruits in Chinese Cherry [Cerasus pseudocerasus (Lindl.) G. Don]

Abstract

Chinese cherry [Cerasus pseudocerasus (Lindl.) G. Don] is an important fruit tree from China that has excellent ornamental, economic, and nutritional values with various colors. The dark-red or red coloration of fruit, an attractive trait for consumers, is determined by anthocyanin pigmentation. In this study, the coloring patterns during fruit development in dark-red and yellow Chinese cherry fruits were firstly illustrated by integrated transcriptome and widely-targeted metabolome analyses. Anthocyanin accumulation in dark-red fruits was significantly higher compared with yellow fruits from the color conversion period, being positively correlated to the color ratio. Based on transcriptome analysis, eight structural genes (CpCHS, CpCHI, CpF3H, CpF3’H, CpDFR, CpANS, CpUFGT, and CpGST) were significantly upregulated in dark-red fruits from the color conversion period, especially CpANS, CpUFGT, and CpGST. On contrary, the expression level of CpLAR were considerably higher in yellow fruits than in dark-red fruits, especially at the early stage. Eight regulatory genes (CpMYB4, CpMYB10, CpMYB20, CpMYB306, bHLH1, CpNAC10, CpERF106, and CpbZIP4) were also identified as determinants of fruit color in Chinese cherry. Liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry identified 33 and 3 differential expressed metabolites related to anthocyanins and procyanidins between mature dark-red and yellow fruits. Cyanidin-3-O-rutinoside was the predominant anthocyanin compound in both fruits, while it was 6.23-fold higher in dark-red than in yellow fruits. More accumulated flavanol and procyanidin contents resulted in less anthocyanin content in flavonoid pathway in yellow fruits due to the higher expression level of CpLAR. These findings can help understand the coloring mechanism of dark-red and yellow fruits in Chinese cherry, and provide genetic basis for breeding new cultivars.

Metabolome integrated with transcriptome reveals the mechanism of three different color formations in Taxus mairei arils

“…Further, through KEGG analysis, we discerned significant enrichment within the “flavonoid biosynthesis” and “carotenoid biosynthesis” pathways. Flavonoid biosynthesis is a well-studied secondary metabolic pathway in plants, known to be involved in the production of various pigments ( Grotewold, 2006 ; Wang et al., 2023 ). Carotenoids, on the other hand, have received substantial research attention in horticultural crops, such as loquat ( Zou et al., 2020 ), corn (Wang et al., 2020), and mango ( Petry and Mercadante, 2016 ).…”

Comparative physiological and transcriptomic analyses provide insights into fruit softening in Chinese cherry [Cerasus pseudocerasus (Lindl.) G.Don]

“…The cDNA was synthesized using PrimeScript™ RT-PCR Kit (Takara, Japan). Primer design and RT-qPCR procedure were conducted as described previously ( Wang et al., 2023 ). The relative gene expression level of each gene was calculated by the 2 −△△Ct method, with cherry actin and ubiquitin as internal controls.…”

Integrative Metabolome and Transcriptome Analyses Reveal the Pericarp Coloration Mechanisms in Bitter Melon (Momordica charantia L.)

“…The most commonly found anthocyanidins are cyanidin, pelargonidin, delphinidin, petunidin, peonidin, and malvidin, and these compounds display different colors varying from red and blue to purple depending on the pH, light, and temperature in plant cells [20]. For example, glycosylated cyanidins are the dominant pigments in apple, berry, and dark red Chinese cherry [12,20,22]. Petunidins and malvidins are the major pigments of black currants and matured darker red wine, respectively [20].…”