Interspecific hybridization and allopolyploidization contribute to the origin of many important crops. Synthetic Brassica is a widely used model for the study of genetic recombination and “fixed heterosis” in allopolyploids. To investigate the effects of the cytoplasm and genome combinations on meiotic recombination, we produced digenomic diploid and triploid hybrids and trigenomic triploid hybrids from the reciprocal crosses of three Brassica diploids (B. rapa, AA; B. nigra, BB; B. oleracea, CC). The chromosomes in the resultant hybrids were doubled to obtain three allotetraploids (B. juncea, AA.BB; B. napus, AA.CC; B. carinata, BB.CC). Intra- and intergenomic chromosome pairings in these hybrids were quantified using genomic in situ hybridization and BAC-FISH. The level of intra- and intergenomic pairings varied significantly, depending on the genome combinations and the cytoplasmic background and/or their interaction. The extent of intragenomic pairing was less than that of intergenomic pairing within each genome. The extent of pairing variations within the B genome was less than that within the A and C genomes, each of which had a similar extent of pairing. Synthetic allotetraploids exhibited nondiploidized meiotic behavior, and their chromosomal instabilities were correlated with the relationship of the genomes and cytoplasmic background. Our results highlight the specific roles of the cytoplasm and genome to the chromosomal behaviors of hybrids and allopolyploids.

Isatis indigotica (2n = 14) is an important medicinal plant in China. Its dried leaves and roots (called Isatidis Folium and Isatidis Radix, respectively) are broadly used in traditional Chinese medicine for curing diseases caused by bacteria and viruses such as influenza and viral pneumonia. Various classes of compounds isolated from this species have been identified as effective ingredients. Previous studies based on transcriptomes revealed only a few candidate genes for the biosynthesis of these active compounds in this medicinal plant. Here, we report a high-quality chromosome-scale genome assembly of I. indigotica with a total size of 293.88 Mb and scaffold N50 = 36.16 Mb using single-molecule real-time long reads and high-throughput chromosome conformation capture techniques. We annotated 30,323 high-confidence protein-coding genes. Based on homolog searching and functional annotations, we identified many candidate genes involved in the biosynthesis of main active components such as indoles, terpenoids, and phenylpropanoids. In addition, we found that some key enzyme-coding gene families related to the biosynthesis of these components were expanded due to tandem duplications, which likely drove the production of these major active compounds and explained why I. indigotica has excellent antibacterial and antiviral activities. Our results highlighted the importance of genome sequencing in identifying candidate genes for metabolite synthesis in medicinal plants.

In vivo haploid production induced by inducer lines derived from Stock 6 is widely used in breeding program of maize (Zea mays L.), but the mechanisms behind have not yet been fully understood. In this study, average frequency of haploid induction in four inbred lines by Stock 6-derived inducer line HZI1 was above 10%. About 0.2% kernels from the cross Hua24 × HZI1 had mosaic endosperm showing yellow shrunken parts from Hua24 to normal parts with purple aleurone from HZI1. Individual lagged chromosomes and micronuclei were observed in mitotic cells of ovules pollinated by HZI1. Above 56.4% of the radicles from the kernels with purple aleurone and colorless embryos were mixoploid (2n = 9–21), and more than 45.22% cells were haploid cells (2n = 10) in three crosses. More than 62.5% of the radicles from the kernels with purple aleurone and purple embryos were mixoploid (2n = 9–21) having 54.27% cells with 2n = 20. SSR analysis showed that all haploids from the cross Hua24 × HZI1 shared the same genomic compositions as Hua24 except for plants Nos. 862 and 857 with some polymorphic DNA bands. The results revealed that chromosome elimination after fertilization caused the haploid production in maize.

Plant architecture is vital not only for crop yield, but also for field management, such as mechanical harvesting. The branch angle is one of the key factors determining plant architecture. With the aim of revealing the genetic control underlying branch angle in rapeseed (Brassica napus L.), the positional variation of branch angles on individual plants was evaluated, and the branch angle increased with the elevation of branch position. Furthermore, three middle branches of individual plants were selected to measure the branch angle because they exhibited the most representative phenotypic values. An association panel with 472 diverse accessions was estimated for branch angle trait in six environments and genotyped with a 60K Brassica Infinium® SNP array. As a result of association mapping, 46 and 38 significantly-associated loci were detected using a mixed linear model (MLM) and a multi-locus random-SNP-effect mixed linear model (MRMLM), which explained up to 62.2% and 66.2% of the cumulative phenotypic variation, respectively. Numerous highly-promising candidate genes were identified by annotating against Arabidopsis thaliana homologous, including some first found in rapeseed, such as TAC1, SGR1, SGR3 and SGR5. These findings reveal the genetic control underlying branch angle and provide insight into genetic improvements that are possible in the plant architecture of rapeseed.

Plant height (PH), branch initiation height (BIH), and stem diameter (SD) are three stem-related traits that play crucial roles in plant architecture and lodging resistance. Herein, we show one doubled haploid (DH) population obtained from a cross between Y689 (one Capsella bursa-pastoris derived Brassica napus intertribal introgression) and Westar (B. napus cultivar) that these traits were significantly positively correlated with one another and with flowering time (FT). Based on a high-density SNP map, a total of 102 additive quantitative trait loci (QTL) were identified across six environments. Seventy-two consensus QTL and 49 unique QTL were identified using a two-round strategy of QTL meta-analysis. Notably, a total of 19 major QTL, including 11 novel ones, were detected for these traits, which comprised two QTL clusters on chromosomes A02 and A07. Conditional QTL mapping was performed to preliminarily evaluate the genetic basis (pleiotropy or tight linkage) of the co-localized QTL. In addition, QTL by environment interactions (QEI) mapping was performed to verify the additive QTL and estimate the QEI effect. In the genomic regions of all major QTL, orthologs of the genes involved in phytohormone biosynthesis, phytohormone signaling, flower development, and cell differentiation in Arabidopsis were proposed as candidate genes. Of these, BnaA02g02560, an ortholog of Arabidopsis GASA4, was suggested as a candidate gene for PH, SD, and FT; and BnaA02g08490, an ortholog of Arabidopsis GNL, was associated with PH, BIH and FT. These results provide useful information for further genetic studies on stem-related traits and plant growth adaptation.

Little is known about the mechanism of drought tolerance in rapeseed (Brassica napus L.). In this study, different morphological and physiological responses to drought stress were studied in three rapeseed cultivars. For the cultivar 2AF009 with high drought tolerance, comparative proteomic analyses were conducted to determine the molecular mechanism behind. Approximately 138 differentially abundant proteins (DAPs) and 1232 phosphoproteins containing 4469 phosphopeptides were identified. Furthermore, 337 phosphoproteins containing 547 phosphorylation sites demonstrated significant changes. These drought-responsive DAPs and phosphoproteins were mainly involved in signal transduction, photosynthesis, and glutathione-ascorbate metabolism. Notably, 9 DAPs were also identified as drought-responsive phosphoproteins, especially beta carbonic anhydrase 1 (βCA1), which was represented by eight distinct protein spots with different abundant levels during drought stress. Tyr207 phosphorylated site of βCA1 was down-regulated at the phosphorylation level during drought stress, which was also located in the substrate-binding active region of three-dimensional (3D) structure. Moreover, drought stress inhibited CA activity. We concluded that Tyr207 was the most likely phosphorylation target affecting the enzyme activity, and phosphorylation of βCA1 might be important for the response to drought stress in rapeseed. The study provided a new clue for the drought tolerance mechanism in B.napus.