Analysis of differential gene expression during phase transition in passionfruit (Passiflora spp.)

• Grant number: 18/21469-0
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Agronomy - Crop Science
• Principal Investigator: Marcelo Carnier Dornelas
• Grantee: Marcelo Carnier Dornelas
• Host Institution: Instituto de Biologia (IB). Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Campinas , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Brazil is the world´s main passionfruit grower, producing about 1 million tons, in around 50 thousand hectares. The commercial species, named yellow passionfruit (Passiflora edulis var. flavicarpa) belongs to the genus Passiflora, which includes about 400 species, most originated in the Neotropics, mainly in South America. Despite its economical importance, there is a gap in knowledge about the development and the reproductive biology of plants belonging to the genus Passiflora. In the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana, the molecular mechanisms involved in the transition to the reproductive phase are controlled by a hierarchy of interactions that involve the products of the genes FLOWERING LOCUS T (FLT), LEAFY (LFY), FRUITFULL (FUL), APETALA1 (AP1), and TERMINAL FLOWER 1 (TFL1). The product of the FT gene is considered to be the florigen, that activates the flowering pathway, while LFY, AP1 and FUL promote floral meristem identity and TFL1 is required for the maintenance of the inflorescence meristem identity, regulating the expression patterns of LFY and AP1. In Arabidopsis, the expression of all these genes is regulated by environmental cues and hormones such as gibberellins and cytokinins. Thus, this project aims to use microscopy techniques associated to molecular tools recently obtained by our group (with the support of FAPESP) such as the draft version of the P. organensis genome and P. edulis transcriptome to: a) Morphologically characterize the phase transition under hormonal influence in P. edulis and P. organensis; b) identify putative Passiflora orthologues to genes traditionally associated to phase transition and characterize their expression patterns under the influence of hormones; c) identify putative Passiflora orthologues of genes involved in the biosynthesis of gibberellins and cytokinins and their signaling pathways during phase transition. Increasing the knowledge about phase transition in Passiflora might contribute to future breeding studies aiming the improvement of passionfruit production. (AU)

Scientific publications

(7)

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

PALERMO, BRUNA RAFAELLA ZANARDI; DORNELAS, MARCELO CARNIER. Beyond YABBYs: a Focus on Versatility and Interactivity. TROPICAL PLANT BIOLOGY, NOV 2020. (18/21469-0)

MORAES, TATIANA S.; ROSSI, MONICA LANZONI; MARTINELLI, ADRIANA P.; DORNELAS, MARCELO C.. Morphological and anatomical traits during development: Highlighting extrafloral nectaries in Passiflora organensis. MICROSCOPY RESEARCH AND TECHNIQUE, v. 85, n. 8, p. 11-pg., 2022-04-14. (18/12853-1, 15/25633-1, 18/21469-0)

COSTA, ZIRLANE PORTUGAL; VARANI, ALESSANDRO MELLO; CAUZ-SANTOS, LUIZ AUGUSTO; SADER, MARIELA ANALIA; GIOPATTO, HELENA AUGUSTO; ZIRPOLI, BRUNA; CALLOT, CAROLINE; CAUET, STEPHANE; MARANDE, WILLIAN; SOUZA CARDOSO, JESSICA LUANA; et al. genome sequence resource for the genus Passiflora, the genome of the wild diploid species Passiflora organensi. PLANT GENOME, v. 14, n. 3, JUL 2021. (18/21469-0, 17/11815-6, 19/07838-6, 17/04216-9, 18/25242-0)

BALDON AIZZA, LILIAN CRISTINA; HELENA FRANKLAND SAWAYA, ALEXANDRA CHRISTINE; DORNELAS, MARCELO CARNIER. Identification of anthocyanins in the corona of two species of Passiflora and their hybrid by ultra-high performance chromatography with electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-ESI-MS/MS). Biochemical Systematics and Ecology, v. 85, p. 60-67, AUG 2019. (15/18900-3, 18/21469-0)

PALERMO, BRUNA RAFAELLA ZANARDI; DORNELAS, MARCELO CARNIER. Beyond YABBYs: a Focus on Versatility and Interactivity. TROPICAL PLANT BIOLOGY, v. 14, n. 3, p. 213-225, SEP 2021. (18/21469-0)

MORAES, TATIANA S.; IMMINK, RICHARD G. H.; MARTINELLI, ADRIANA P.; ANGENENT, GERCO C.; VAN ESSE, WILMA; DORNELAS, MARCELO C.. Passiflora organensis FT/TFL1 gene family and their putative roles in phase transition and floral initiation. PLANT REPRODUCTION, NOV 2021. (18/12853-1, 18/21469-0, 15/25633-1)

GIOPPATO, HELENA AUGUSTO; DORNELAS, MARCELO CARNIER. Plant design gets its details: Modulating plant architecture by phase transitions. Plant Physiology and Biochemistry, v. 163, p. 1-14, JUN 2021. (18/25242-0, 18/21469-0)