Externí autoři: Oushadee A. J. Abeyawardana | Laboratory of Biologically Active Compounds

Contrasting gene expression patterns during floral induction in two Chenopodium ficifolium genotypes reveal putative flowering regulators

Chenopodium ficifolium is a close diploid relative of the tetraploid crop Chenopodium quinoa. Owing to its reproducible germination and seedling development, it becomes a promising model for studying floral induction, providing a basis for comparison with C. quinoa. Two C. ficifolium genotypes differ in photoperiodic requirement: C. ficifolium 283 accelerates flowering under long days, whereas C. ficifolium 459 flowers earlier under short days.

The FLOWERING LOCUS T LIKE 2-1 gene of Chenopodium triggers precocious flowering in Arabidopsis seedlings

Phenotypes of primary transformants of Arabidopsis Col-0 carrying CfFTL2–1 under the complex metoxyfenozide-inducible promoter (Vge:TM-2:5×m:cfftl2–1), which flowered without chemical induction. Plants started to bolt immediately after germination. Some of them formed minuscule flowers (a, b, c), others produced tiny flower buds with long trichomes (d). All the plantlets died without generating viable seed. Photo: Lukáš Synek.

Full resolution

The FLOWERING LOCUS T like 2–1 gene of Chenopodium ficifolium and Chenopodium quinoa acts as a strong activator of flowering in Arabidopsis, triggering flowering at cotyledon stage and causing lethality when overexpressed.

The transcriptomic (RNA-Sequencing) datasets collected in the course of floral induction in Chenopodium ficifolium 459

The transition from vegetative growth to reproduction is an essential commitment in plant life. It is triggered by environmental cues (day length, temperature, nutrients) and regulated by the very complex signaling gene network and by phytohormones. The control of flowering is well understood in Arabidopsis thaliana and in some crops, much less is known about the other angiosperms.