Selection and verification of reliable internal reference genes in stem development of herbaceous peony (Paeonia lactiflora Pall.)

• Published in: Physiology and molecular biology of plants Vol. 29; no. 6; pp. 773 - 782
• Main Authors: Lu, Lili, Tang, Yuhan, Xu, Huajie, Qian, Yi, Tao, Jun, Zhao, Daqiu
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New Delhi Springer India 01.06.2023; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Autumn; Biological and Medical Physics; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biophysics; Cell Biology; Cell walls; Cellobiase; Developmental stages; Gene expression; Genes; Glucosidase; Histone H3; Histones; Life Sciences; Mechanical properties; Molecular modelling; Paeonia lactiflora; Plant Physiology; Plant Sciences; Quantitative analysis; Quantitative research; Research Article; Stems; Tubs; Tubulin; Herbaceous peony; Reference gene; Expression pattern; qRT–PCR
• ISSN: 0971-5894; 0974-0430
• DOI: 10.1007/s12298-023-01325-5

Herbaceous peony ( Paeonia lactiflora Pall.) has emerged in the cut flower market due to its beautiful appearance. The bending flower stems caused by a lack of mechanical strength is the main problem restricting the development of the cut P. lactiflora industry. So it is of great worth to reveal the basis of stem development changes in P. lactiflora to improve its cut flower quality. Quantitative research on gene expression characteristics can provide clues for understanding their biological functions, and the screening of relatively stable expression genes is a prerequisite for the quantitative study of gene expression characteristics. Thus, it is necessary to find appropriate genes during stem development so as to analyze the qRT‒PCR results. In this study, 10 genes were screened, and these genes expressed stably in stems of different stem strengths at three different developmental stages. Then, their expressions were evaluated by RefFinder, BestKeeper, NormFinder, and GeNorm programs. The results demonstrated that γ-tubulin ( γ-TUB ) was the most suitable gene, followed by α-tubulin ( α-TUB ) and β-D-glucosidase ( β-GUS ), whereas histone H3 ( His ) was the least suitable gene. Besides, the temporal and spatial expression characteristics of PlCOMT1 , the key gene concerned with the synthesis of cell wall fillers in P. lactiflora , were also used to evaluate the suitability of genes. Consequently, γ-TUB and α-TUB are the two best combinations during stem development, and their combination can be used for the stem development of P. lactiflora. These findings will provide a reference for the selection of genes related to stem development and the study of molecular mechanisms related to stem development in P. lactiflora .