title: A transcriptomics investigation into pine reproductive organ development.
abstract: The development of reproductive structures in gymnosperms is still poorly studied because of a lack of genomic information and useful genetic tools. The hermaphroditic reproductive structure derived from unisexual gymnosperms is an even less studied aspect of seed plant evolution. To extend our understanding of the molecular mechanism of hermaphroditism and the determination of sexual identity of conifer reproductive structures in general, unisexual and bisexual cones from Pinus tabuliformis were profiled for gene expression using 60K microarrays. Expression patterns of genes during progression of sexual cone development were analysed using RNA-seq. The results showed that, overall, the transcriptomes of male structures in bisexual cones were more similar to those of female cones. However, the expression of several MADS-box genes in the bisexual cones was similar to that of male cones at the more juvenile developmental stage, while despite these expression shifts, male structures of bisexual cones and normal male cones were histologically indistinguishable and cone development was continuous. This study represents a starting point for in-depth analysis of the molecular regulation of cone development and also the origin of hermaphroditism in pine.
authors.affiliation: National Engineering Laboratory for Forest Tree Breeding, Key Laboratory for Genetics and Breeding of Forest Trees and Ornamental Plants of Ministry of Education, College of biological sciences and technology, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing, 100083, China.
authors.forename: Shihui
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Niu
authors.affiliation: National Engineering Laboratory for Forest Tree Breeding, Key Laboratory for Genetics and Breeding of Forest Trees and Ornamental Plants of Ministry of Education, College of biological sciences and technology, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing, 100083, China.
authors.forename: Huwei
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Yuan
authors.affiliation: National Engineering Laboratory for Forest Tree Breeding, Key Laboratory for Genetics and Breeding of Forest Trees and Ornamental Plants of Ministry of Education, College of biological sciences and technology, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing, 100083, China.
authors.forename: Xinrui
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.affiliation: Department of Forest and Conservation Sciences, Faculty of Forestry, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z4, Canada.|Département des Sciences du Bois et de la Forêt, Faculté de Foresterie, de Géographie et de Géomatique, Université Laval, Québec, QC, G1V 0A6, Canada.
authors.forename: Ilga
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Porth
authors.affiliation: National Engineering Laboratory for Forest Tree Breeding, Key Laboratory for Genetics and Breeding of Forest Trees and Ornamental Plants of Ministry of Education, College of biological sciences and technology, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing, 100083, China.
authors.forename: Yue
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Department of Forest and Conservation Sciences, Faculty of Forestry, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z4, Canada.
authors.forename: Yousry A
authors.initials: YA
authors.lastname: El-Kassaby
authors.affiliation: National Engineering Laboratory for Forest Tree Breeding, Key Laboratory for Genetics and Breeding of Forest Trees and Ornamental Plants of Ministry of Education, College of biological sciences and technology, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing, 100083, China.
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Li
mesh_terms: D020869:Gene Expression Profiling / Q000379:methods*; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental; D018506:Gene Expression Regulation, Plant; D017343:Genes, Plant; D009024:Morphogenesis / Q000235:genetics*; D020411:Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis; D010641:Phenotype; D028223:Pinus / Q000235:genetics* / Q000254:growth & development*; D010940:Plant Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D012098:Reproduction / Q000235:genetics; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D059467:Transcriptome / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D010940:Plant Proteins; D014157:Transcription Factors
keywords: Pinus tabuliformis; bisexual cones; developmental regulators; gymnosperms; hermaphroditism; reproductive structures; transcriptome