Ju Hyun Ryu

De Novo Transcriptome Analysis to Identify Anthocyanin Biosynthesis Genes Responsible for Tissue-Specific Pigmentation in Zoysiagrass (Zoysia japonica Steud.).

Zoysiagrass (Zoysia japonica Steud.) is commonly found in temperate climate regions and widely used for lawns, in part, owing to its uniform green color. However, some zoysiagrass cultivars accumulate red to purple pigments in their spike and stolon tissues, thereby decreasing the aesthetic value. Here we analyzed the anthocyanin contents of two zoysiagrass cultivars ‘Anyang-jungji’ (AJ) and ‘Greenzoa’ (GZ) that produce spikes and stolons with purple and green colors, respectively, and revealed that cyanidin and petunidin were primarily accumulated in the pigmented tissues. In parallel, we performed a de novo transcriptome assembly and identified differentially expressed genes between the two cultivars. We found that two anthocyanin biosynthesis genes encoding anthocyanidin synthase (ANS) and dihydroflavonol 4-reductase (DFR) were preferentially upregulated in the purple AJ spike upon pigmentation. Both ANS and DFR genes were also highly expressed in other zoysiagrass cultivars with purple spikes and stolons, but their expression levels were significantly low in the cultivars with green tissues. We observed that recombinant ZjDFR1 and ZjANS1 proteins successfully catalyze the conversions of dihydroflavonols into leucoanthocyanidins and leucoanthocyanidins into anthocyanidins, respectively. These findings strongly suggest that upregulation of ANS and DFR is responsible for tissue-specific anthocyanin biosynthesis and differential pigmentation in zoysiagrass. The present study also demonstrates the feasibility of a de novo transcriptome analysis to identify the key genes associated with specific traits, even in the absence of reference genome information.

The Effects of Biological Control using the Composted Liquid Manure on Large Patch in Zoysiagrass (Zoysia japonica)

This study was conducted to investigate whether several composted liquid manures (CLMs) are useful for biological control of large patch on zoysiagrass and investigate the chemical and biological factors to suppress large patch in soil treated with CLMs. The CLMs were produced at 4 different facilities for livestock excretion treatments located in Korea. Field experiments were carried out at 5 golf courses located near each facility. CLM and Chemical fertilizer (CF: water soluble fertilizer, 20-20-20) were applied four and three times with N at 12 g m -2 per year, respectively. There was significant increase of concentration of K, Na, and Cu of soil treated with CLM compared to CF treatment. Among experimental plots, CN and GG2 plot sites were shown significant higher effect of biological control 80% and 50% respectively against large patch disease. The number of bacteria, Actinomycetes, and fungi in soil at these sites significantly increased and fluorescein diacetate hydrolytic activity was enhanced, while the soil was treated with CLM. The results of this study demonstrated that CLM application has effect on soil to suppress large patch and reduce the use of fungicide in environment-friendly turf management.

Influence of the Composted Liquid Manure on the Turf Growth of Zoysiagrass (Zoysiagrass japonica) and Soil Properties

This study was conducted to investigate the effects of composted liquid manure (CLM) on soil properties and turf quality of zoysiagrass. The CLMs were produced at 5 facilities for livestock excretions treatments located in Cheongwon, Gunwi, Iksan, Nonsan, and Yeoju in Korea, respectively. Field experiments were conducted at 5 golf courses and a sod farm located near each facility for livestock excretion treatments. Chemical fertilizer (CF) with N at 12 g m -2 year -1 and CLMs were applied four times, respectively. The constituents of the different CLMs were variable based on when and where the fertilizer was produced. Soil K content significantly increased when the soil was treated with CLMs. The soil treated with CF showed a higher content of total P than that treated with CLM. CF and CLMs treatments significantly increased the turf color index compared with control. Tiller density and shoot dry weight of fertilized plots were also higher than those of non-fertilized plots. However, there was no significant difference in turf color index and tiller density among plots treated by CLMs or CF. The results of this study demonstrated that CLMs could be a substitute for CF.