Morphological, physiological and transcriptomic analyses reveal potential candidate genes responsible for salt stress in Rosa rugosa

Abstract

Rosa rugosa is a multifunctional species with various applications in fragrance extraction and ornamental, medical, and edible purposes. Compared to other species of Rosa, R. rugosa exhibits greater resistance to salt stresses; however, the mechanisms underlying its salinity tolerance are still unclear. Thus, we assessed the salt tolerance of 16 R. rugosa germplasms based on the changes in morphology and physiology under different salt concentrations. Among them, two cultivars ('Zizhi' and 'Fenzizhi') were chosen for transcriptome sequencing. The differentially expressed genes (DEGs) associated with phytohormone synthesis and signalling pathways, ROS production, carbohydrate metabolism and transport, stress response and resistance were identified as responding to salt stress in R. rugosa. PPI network analysis further identified two DEGs, SCL28 and E2F1, which exhibited the most interactions with other DEGs. Consequently, this research contributes to a greater understanding of salinity tolerance mechanism in R. rugosa and could provide gene resources for breeding salt-tolerant cultivars in Rosa.

Keywords

• rosa rugosa
• salt stress
• morphology
• physiology
• transcriptome sequencing