title: Tissue-specific laser microdissection of the Brassica napus funiculus improves gene discovery and spatial identification of biological processes.
abstract: The three primary tissue systems of the funiculus each undergo unique developmental programs to support the growth and development of the filial seed. To understand the underlying transcriptional mechanisms that orchestrate development of the funiculus at the globular embryonic stage of seed development, we used laser microdissection coupled with RNA-sequencing to produce a high-resolution dataset of the mRNAs present in the epidermis, cortex, and vasculature of the Brassica napus (canola) funiculus. We identified 7761 additional genes in these tissues compared with the whole funiculus organ alone using this technology. Differential expression and enrichment analyses were used to identify several biological processes associated with each tissue system. Our data show that cell wall modification and lipid metabolism are prominent in the epidermis, cell growth and modification occur in the cortex, and vascular tissue proliferation and differentiation occur in the central vascular strand. We provide further evidence that each of the three tissue systems of the globular stage funiculus are involved in specific biological processes that all co-ordinate to support seed development. The identification of genes and gene regulators responsible for tissue-specific developmental processes of the canola funiculus now serves as a valuable resource for seed improvement research.
authors.affiliation: University of Manitoba, Department of Biological Sciences, 50 Sifton Road, Winnipeg, MB R3T 2N2, Canada.
authors.forename: Ainsley C
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Chan
authors.affiliation: University of Manitoba, Department of Biological Sciences, 50 Sifton Road, Winnipeg, MB R3T 2N2, Canada.
authors.forename: Deirdre
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Khan
authors.affiliation: University of Manitoba, Department of Biological Sciences, 50 Sifton Road, Winnipeg, MB R3T 2N2, Canada.
authors.forename: Ian J
authors.initials: IJ
authors.lastname: Girard
authors.affiliation: University of Manitoba, Department of Biological Sciences, 50 Sifton Road, Winnipeg, MB R3T 2N2, Canada.
authors.forename: Michael G
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Becker
authors.affiliation: University of Manitoba, Department of Biological Sciences, 50 Sifton Road, Winnipeg, MB R3T 2N2, Canada.
authors.forename: Jenna L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Millar
authors.affiliation: University of Manitoba, Department of Biological Sciences, 50 Sifton Road, Winnipeg, MB R3T 2N2, Canada.
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Sytnik
authors.affiliation: University of Manitoba, Department of Biological Sciences, 50 Sifton Road, Winnipeg, MB R3T 2N2, Canada Mark.Belmonte@umanitoba.ca.
authors.forename: Mark F
authors.initials: MF
authors.lastname: Belmonte
mesh_terms: D029688:Brassica napus / Q000235:genetics* / Q000254:growth & development*; D061346:Laser Capture Microdissection; D056771:Ovule / Q000254:growth & development; D012639:Seeds / Q000254:growth & development; D017423:Sequence Analysis, RNA; D014158:Transcription, Genetic
keywords: Brassica napus; RNA-seq; canola; development; funiculus; seed; transcriptome.