Conifers have dominated forests for more than 200 million years and are of huge ecological and economic importance. Here we present the draft assembly of the 20-gigabase genome of Norway spruce (Picea abies), the first available for any gymnosperm. The number of well-supported genes (28,354) is similar to the >100 times smaller genome of Arabidopsis thaliana, and there is no evidence of a recent whole-genome duplication in the gymnosperm lineage. Instead, the large genome size seems to result from the slow and steady accumulation of a diverse set of long-terminal repeat transposable elements, possibly owing to the lack of an efficient elimination mechanism. Comparative sequencing of Pinus sylvestris, Abies sibirica, Juniperus communis, Taxus baccata and Gnetum gnemon reveals that the transposable element diversity is shared among extant conifers. Expression of 24-nucleotide small RNAs, previously implicated in transposable element silencing, is tissue-specific and much lower than in other plants. We further identify numerous long (>10,000 base pairs) introns, gene-like fragments, uncharacterized long non-coding RNAs and short RNAs. This opens up new genomic avenues for conifer forestry and breeding.

Plant root systems colonized by arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi have previously been shown to influence soil bacterial populations; however, the dir

Background: Norway spruce [Picea abies (L.) Karst.] is one of the most important conifer species in Europe. The wood is economically important and infections by wood-rotting fungi cause substantial losses to the industry. The first line of defence in a Norway spruce tree is the bark. It is a very efficient barrier against infection based on its mechanical and chemical properties. Once an injury or an infection is recognized by the tree, induced defences are activated. In this study we examined transcriptional response, using 454-sequencing, and chemical profiles in bark of Norway spruce trees with different susceptibility to Heterobasidion annosum s.l. infection. The aim was to find associations between the transcriptome and chemical profiles to the level of susceptibility to Heterobasidion spp. in Norway spruce genotypes. Results: Both terpene and phenol compositions were analysed and at 28 days post inoculation (dpi) high levels of 3-carene was produced in response to H. annosum. However, significant patterns relating to inoculation or to genotypes with higher or lower susceptibility could only be found in the phenol fraction. The levels of the flavonoid catechin, which is polymerized into proanthocyanidins (PA), showed a temporal variation; it accumulated between 5 and 15 dpi in response to H. annosum infection in the less susceptible genotypes. The transcriptome data suggested that the accumulation of free catechin was preceded by an induction of genes in the flavonoid and PA biosynthesis pathway such as leucoanthocyanidin reductase. Quantitative PCR analyses verified the induction of genes in the phenylpropanoid and flavonoid pathway. The qPCR data also highlighted genotype-dependent differences in the transcriptional regulation of these pathways. Conclusions: The varying dynamics in transcriptional and chemical patterns displayed by the less susceptible genotypes suggest that there is a genotypic variation in successful spruce defence strategies against Heterobasidion. However, both high levels of piceasides and flavonoids in the less susceptible genotypes suggested the importance of the phenolic compounds in the defence. Clearly an extended comparison of the transcriptional responses in the interaction with Heterobasidion between several independent genotypes exhibiting reduced susceptibility is needed to catalogue mechanisms of successful host defence strategies.

Transcription factors forming MYB-bHLH-WDR complexes are known to regulate the biosynthesis of specialized metabolites in angiosperms through an intricate network. These Specialized metabolites participate in a wide range of biological processes including plant growth, development, reproduction as well as in plant immunity. Studying the regulation of their biosynthesis is thus essential. While MYB transcription factors have been previously shown to control specialized metabolism in gymnosperms, the identity of their partners, in particular bHLH or WDR members, has not yet been revealed. To gain knowledge about MYB-bHLH-WDR transcription factor complexes in gymnosperms and their regulation of specialized metabolism, we identified two bHLH homologs of AtTT8, six homologs of the MYB transcription factor AtTT2 and one WDR ortholog of AtTTG1 in Norway spruce. We investigated the expression levels of these genes in diverse tissues and upon treatments with various stimuli including methyl-salicylate, methyl-jasmonate, wounding or fungal inoculation. In addition, we also identified protein-protein interactions among different homologs of MYB, bHLH and WDR. Finally, we generated transgenic spruce cell lines overexpressing four of the Norway spruce AtTT2 homologs and observed differential regulation of genes in the flavonoid pathway and flavonoid contents.