Transcriptome Analysis Identified Dichogamy Regulation Networks in Alpinia mutica

Abstract

Abstract In the sexual reproduction of flowering plants, outcrossing has natural advantages in heredity, and is the reproduction method used by most flowering plants. Dichogamy, accompanied by flower sex transition or differential maturation, promotes outcrossing and reduces selfing and interference with male and female functions, impacting the diversity and evolution of flowering plants significantly. However, due to a chronic lack of available research materials, the regulatory mechanism of dichogamy, an important reproductive trait that has been of great interest since Darwin's time, remains unknown. Fortunately, Aplinia mutica, a species of wild ginger that has two sexes within the same population and achieve dichogamy through sex transition, provides superb research material. In this study, differential expression gene analysis and group screening were conducted to identify the underlying causes and potential regulatory networks that may be involved in the flower sex transition and the maturity of two sex organs, anther, and stigma. Our findings revealed that genes such as MYB-TFs, NAC-TFs, FLA11, KSC6, NADPH, PP1CG2, and VTC2; plant hormones such as jasmonic acid (JA), auxin, and brassinosteroids (BR); environmental factors such as light and temperature; and many other factors, such as phosphorylation and other biological processes, may all affect the sex transition process of A. mutica. the regulation of sex transition and dichogamy is a complex process. Since the regulatory mechanism of dichogamy has been an important open question for a long time, our study has made a novel contribution by identifying and examining its transcriptional regulation in plants at the molecular level. This finding holds immense importance for further investigations in this area.