Acta Agriculturae Zhejiangensis ›› 2024, Vol. 36 ›› Issue (8): 1820-1831.DOI: 10.3969/j.issn.1004-1524.20231044

• Horticultural Science • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Expression analysis of JAZ family genes in harvested cucumber fruit under cold storage condition

YUAN Xiao1,2(), JIANG Yuanyuan1, ZHU Yunna1, QU Shanshan3,*(), WANG Yukun1, YUAN Yuan1, WANG Bin1,*()   

  1. 1. Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Utilization and Conservation of Food and Medicinal Resources in Northern Region/College of Biology and Agriculture, Shaoguan University, Shaoguan 512005, Guangdong, China
    2. College of Horticulture, South China Agricultural University/Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Postharvest Science of Fruits and Vegetables, Guangzhou 510642, China
    3. College of Food Science and Technology, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou 450002, China
  • Received:2023-08-31 Online:2024-08-25 Published:2024-09-06
  • Contact: QU Shanshan,WANG Bin

Abstract:

Chilling injury poses a significant challenge to the postharvest storage and transportation of cucumber fruits. Jasmonic acid (JA) plays a crucial role in regulating the chilling resistance in plants. JAZ (JA ZIM-domain) proteins act as transcription repressors of JA signaling, inhibiting both the synthesis and transmission of JA. To explore the role of JAZ family genes during cold storage of harvested cucumber fruits, JAZ family genes were identified and screened from the cucumber genome, and their sequence features, physicochemical properties, and spatial-temporal expression patterns were analyzed. The findings revealed a total of 17 JAZ genes in the cucumber genome, which could be divided into 8 subfamilies, all containing the conserved Tify or CCT domains in their protein sequences. Most of these JAZ genes responded to cold storage (5 ℃ and 10 ℃) treatments, suggesting the involvement of JAZ family proteins in regulating the chilling tolerance in cucumber fruits. However, different JAZ genes exhibited varying degrees of response to cold treatments. The promoters of cucumber JAZ family genes had numerous stress-responsive elements, though the specific types of elements varied. During 5 ℃ storage period, the expression levels of 14 JAZ genes gradually decreased, while the expression of JAZ11 significantly increased with storage time. Exogenous treatments with abscisic acid (ABA), methyl jasmonate (MeJA), melatonin (MT), as well as the silencing HHO2 and GRP3 expression in harvested cucumbers, significantly impacted the expression of JAZ family genes. These results further confirmed the involvement of cucumber JAZ family genes in regulating chilling tolerance. ABA, MeJA, and MT treatments significantly downregulated JAZ11 expression, whereas silencing HHO2 and GRP3 significantly upregulated its expression. These results together suggest that JAZ11 negatively regulates JA signaling and cold tolerance in cucumber fruits. This study provides novel insights into the physicochemical properties and expression patterns of cucumber JAZ family genes under cold conditions, and suggesting that JAZ11 may be the key factor responsible for negative regulation of chilling tolerance in harvested cucumbers among JAZ family proteins.

Key words: JAZ gene, harvested cucumber, cold storage, expression analysis

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