Efficient Virus-Induced Gene Silencing in <i>Ilex dabieshanensis</i> Using Tobacco Rattle Virus
Xinran Chong,
Yue Wang,
Xiaoyang Xu,
Fan Zhang,
Chuanyong Wang,
Yanwei Zhou,
Ting Zhou,
Yunlong Li,
Xiaoqing Lu,
Hong Chen
Affiliations
Xinran Chong
Jiangsu Key Laboratory for the Research and Utilization of Plant Resources, Institute of Botany, Jiangsu Province and Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing Botanical Garden Mem. Sun Yat-Sen, Nanjing 210014, China
Yue Wang
College of Horticulture, Jinling Institute of Technology, Nanjing 210038, China
Xiaoyang Xu
Jiangsu Key Laboratory for the Research and Utilization of Plant Resources, Institute of Botany, Jiangsu Province and Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing Botanical Garden Mem. Sun Yat-Sen, Nanjing 210014, China
Fan Zhang
Jiangsu Key Laboratory for the Research and Utilization of Plant Resources, Institute of Botany, Jiangsu Province and Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing Botanical Garden Mem. Sun Yat-Sen, Nanjing 210014, China
Chuanyong Wang
Jiangsu Key Laboratory for the Research and Utilization of Plant Resources, Institute of Botany, Jiangsu Province and Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing Botanical Garden Mem. Sun Yat-Sen, Nanjing 210014, China
Yanwei Zhou
Jiangsu Key Laboratory for the Research and Utilization of Plant Resources, Institute of Botany, Jiangsu Province and Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing Botanical Garden Mem. Sun Yat-Sen, Nanjing 210014, China
Ting Zhou
Jiangsu Key Laboratory for the Research and Utilization of Plant Resources, Institute of Botany, Jiangsu Province and Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing Botanical Garden Mem. Sun Yat-Sen, Nanjing 210014, China
Yunlong Li
Jiangsu Key Laboratory for the Research and Utilization of Plant Resources, Institute of Botany, Jiangsu Province and Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing Botanical Garden Mem. Sun Yat-Sen, Nanjing 210014, China
Xiaoqing Lu
Jiangsu Key Laboratory for the Research and Utilization of Plant Resources, Institute of Botany, Jiangsu Province and Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing Botanical Garden Mem. Sun Yat-Sen, Nanjing 210014, China
Hong Chen
Jiangsu Key Laboratory for the Research and Utilization of Plant Resources, Institute of Botany, Jiangsu Province and Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing Botanical Garden Mem. Sun Yat-Sen, Nanjing 210014, China
Ilex dabieshanensis is not only an important ornamental plant, but can also be used to produce Kuding tea, owing to its lipid-lowering and anti-inflammatory medicinal properties. The genetic transformation of I. dabieshanensis is currently difficult, which restricts functional gene studies and molecular breeding research on this species. Virus-induced gene silencing (VIGS) is a powerful tool for determining gene functions in plants. The present study reports the first application of VIGS mediated by a tobacco rattle virus (TRV) vector in I. dabieshanensis. We tested the efficiency of the VIGS system to silence Mg-chelatase H subunit (ChlH) gene through agroinfiltration. The agroinfiltrated leaves of I. dabieshanensis exhibited a typical yellow-leaf phenotype of ChlH gene silencing at 21 days post infiltration. Endogenous ChlH expression levels in the leaves of yellow-leaf phenotype plants were all significantly lower than that in the leaves of mock-infected and control plants. Overall, our results indicated that the TRV-based VIGS system can efficiently silence genes in I. dabieshanensis, and this system will contribute to efficient functional genomics research in I. dabieshanensis.
