Lingzhen Ye

Tissue Metabolic Responses to Salt Stress in Wild and Cultivated Barley

A thorough understanding of the mechanisms underlying barley salt tolerance and exploitation of elite genetic resource are essential for utilizing wild barley germplasm in developing barley varieties with salt tolerance. In order to reveal the physiological and molecular difference in salt tolerance between Tibetan wild barley (Hordeum spontaneum) and cultivated barley (Hordeum vulgare), profiles of 82 key metabolites were studies in wild and cultivated barley in response to salinity. According to shoot dry biomass under salt stress, XZ16 is a fast growing and salt tolerant wild barley. The results of metabolite profiling analysis suggested osmotic adjustment was a basic mechanism, and polyols played important roles in developing salt tolerance only in roots, and high level of sugars and energy in roots and active photosynthesis in leaves were important for barley to develop salt tolerance. The metabolites involved in tolerance enhancement differed between roots and shoots, and also between genotypes. Tibetan wild barley, XZ16 had higher chlorophyll content and higher contents of compatible solutes than CM72, while the cultivated barley, CM72 probably enhanced its salt tolerance mainly through increasing glycolysis and energy consumption, when the plants were exposed to high salinity. The current research extends our understanding of the mechanisms involved in barley salt tolerance and provides possible utilization of Tibetan wild barley in developing barley cultivars with salt tolerance.

Genetic variation of HvCBF genes and their association with salinity tolerance in Tibetan annual wild barley.

The evaluation of both the genetic variation and the identification of salinity tolerant accessions of Tibetan annual wild barley (hereafter referred to as Tibetan barley) (Hordeum vulgare L. ssp. Spontaneum and H. vulgare L. ssp. agriocrithum) are essential for discovering and exploiting novel alleles involved in salinity tolerance. In this study, we examined tissue dry biomass and the Na+ and K+ contents of 188 Tibetan barley accessions in response to salt stress. We investigated the genetic variation of transcription factors HvCBF1, HvCBF3 and HvCBF4 within these accessions, conducting association analysis between these three genes and the respective genotypic salt tolerance. Salt stress significantly reduced shoot and root dry weight by 27.6% to 73.1% in the Tibetan barley lines. HvCBF1, HvCBF3 and HvCBF4 showed diverse sequence variation in amplicon as evident by the identification of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and 3, 8 and 13 haplotypes, respectively. Furthermore, the decay of Linkage disequilibrium (LD) of chromosome 5 was 8.9 cM (r2<0.1). Marker bpb-4891 and haplotype 13 (Ps 610) of the HvCBF4 gene were significantly (P<0.05) and highly significantly (P<0.001) associated with salt tolerance. However, HvCBF1 and HvCBF3 genes were not associated with salinity tolerance. The accessions from haplotype 13 of the HvCBF4 gene showed high salinity tolerance, maintaining significantly lower Na+/K+ ratios and higher dry weight. It is thus proposed that these Tibetan barley accessions could be of value for enhancing salinity tolerance in cultivated barley.

Identification of a Phytase Gene in Barley (Hordeum vulgare L.)

Background Endogenous phytase plays a crucial role in phytate degradation and is thus closely related to nutrient efficiency in barley products. The understanding of genetic information of phytase in barley can provide a useful tool for breeding new barley varieties with high phytase activity. Methodology/Principal Findings Quantitative trait loci (QTL) analysis for phytase activity was conducted using a doubled haploid population. Phytase protein was purified and identified by the LC-ESI MS/MS Shotgun method. Purple acid phosphatase (PAP) gene was sequenced and the position was compared with the QTL controlling phytase activity. A major QTL for phytase activity was mapped to chromosome 5 H in barley. The gene controlling phytase activity in the region was named as mqPhy. The gene HvPAP a was mapped to the same position as mqPhy, supporting the colinearity between HvPAP a and mqPhy. Conclusions/Significance It is the first report on QTLs for phytase activity and the results showed that HvPAP a, which shares a same position with the QTL, is a major phytase gene in barley grains.

Genetic architecture of limit dextrinase inhibitor (LDI) activity in Tibetan wild barley

BackgroundLimit dextrinase inhibitor (LDI) inhibits starch degradation in barley grains during malting because it binds with limit dextrinase (LD). There is a wide genetic variation in LDI synthesis and inactivation during barley grain development and germination. However, the genetic control of LDI activity remains little understood.ResultsIn this study, association analysis was performed on 162 Tibetan wild accessions by using LDI activity, 835 Diversity Arrays Technology (DArT) markers and single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of the gene HvLDI encoding LDI. Two DArT markers, bpb-8347, bpb-0068, and 31 SNPs of HvLDI were significantly associated with LDI activity, explaining 10.0%, 6.6% and 13.4% of phenotypic variation, respectively. Bpb-8347 is located on chromosome 6H, near the locus of HvLDI, and bpb-0068 is located on 3H.ConclusionsThe current results confirmed the locus of the gene controlling LDI activity and identified a new DArT markers associated with LDI activity. The SNPs associated with LDI activity may provide a new insight into the genetic variation of LDI activity in barley grains.

The effects of GA and ABA treatments on metabolite profile of germinating barley

Sugar degradation during grain germination is important for malt quality. In malting industry, gibberellin (GA) is frequently used for improvement of malting quality. In this study, the changes of metabolite profiles and starch-degrading enzymes during grain germination, and as affected by GA and abscisic acid (ABA) were investigated using two wild barley accessions XZ72 and XZ95. Totally fifty-two metabolites with known structures were detected and the change of metabolite during germination was time- and genotype dependent. Sugars and amino acids were the most dramatically changed compounds. Addition of GA enhanced the activities of starch-degrading enzymes, and increased most metabolites, especially sugars and amino acids, whereas ABA had the opposite effect. The effect varied with the barley accessions. The current study is the first attempt in investigating the effect of hormones on metabolite profiles in germinating barley grain, being helpful for identifying the factors affecting barley germination or malt quality.

Allelic Diversity of a Beer Haze Active Protein Gene in Cultivated and Tibetan Wild Barley and Development of Allelic Specific Markers

The formation of haze is a serious quality problem in beer production. It has been shown that the use of silica elute (SE)-ve malt (absence of molecular weight (MW) ∼14000 Da) for brewing can improve haze stability in the resultant beer, and the protein was identified as a barley trypsin inhibitor of the chloroform/methanol type (BTI-CMe). The objectives of this study were to determine (1) the allelic diversity of the gene controlling BTI-CMe in cultivated and Tibetan wild barley and (2) allele-specific (AS) markers for screening SE protein type. A survey of 172 Tibetan annual wild barley accessions and 71 cultivated barley genotypes was conducted, and 104 wild accessions and 35 cultivated genotypes were identified as SE+ve and 68 wild accessions and 36 cultivated genotypes as SE-ve. The allelic diversity of the gene controlling BTI-CMe was investigated by cloning, alignment, and association analysis. It was found that there were significant differences between the SE+ve and SE-ve types in single-nucleotide polymorphisms at 234 (SNP(234)), SNP(313), and SNP(385.) Furthermore, two sets of AS markers were developed to screen SE protein type based on SNP(313). AS-PCR had results very similar to those obtained by immunoblot method. Mapping analysis showed that the gene controlling the MW∼14 kDa band was located on the short arm of chromosome 3H, at the position of marker BPB-0527 (33.302 cM) in the Franklin/Yerong DH population.

Genetic diversity and QTL mapping of thermostability of limit dextrinase in barley

Limit dextrinase (LD) is an essential amylolytic enzyme for the complete degradation of starch, and it is closely associated with malt quality. A survey of 51 cultivated barley and 40 Tibetan wild barley genotypes showed a wide genetic diversity of LD activity and LD thermostability. Compared with cultivated barley, Tibetan wild barley showed lower LD activity and higher LD thermostability. A doubled haploid population composed of 496 DArT and 28 microsatellite markers was used for mapping Quantitative Trait Loci (QTLs). Parental line Yerong showed low LD activity and high LD thermostability, but Franklin exhibited high LD activity and low LD thermostability. Three QTLs associated with thermostable LD were identified. The major QTL is close to the LD gene on chromosome 7H. The two minor QTLs colocalized with previously reported QTLs determining malt-extract and diastatic power on chromosomes 1H and 2H, respectively. These QTLs may be useful for a better understanding of the genetic control of LD activity and LD thermostability in barley.

Association of HvLDI with limit dextrinase activity and malt quality in barley

Limit dextrinase (LD) is a unique de-branching enzyme involved in starch mobilization of barley grains during malting, and closely related to malt quality. Genotypic variation of LD activity is controlled by genetic factors and also affected by environmental conditions. Correlation analysis between LD activity and four malt quality parameters showed that LD activity was positively correlated with diastatic power, Kolbach index and the quality of malt extract, while negatively correlated with viscosity. The structure-based association analysis demonstrated that HvLDI, a gene encoding limit dextrinase inhibitor, was a major determinant of LD activity and malt quality. The single nucleotide polymorphisms associated with LD activity could be used in early generation selection for barley breeding.

Haze activity of different barley trypsin inhibitors of the chloroform/methanol type (BTI-CMe).

Our previous study found that the critical protein in SE (silica eluted) proteins is BTI-CMe, and assumed that SE-ve malt for brewing may improve the haze stability in beer. In this study, we investigated the difference in gene sequence and corresponding amino acid sequence of BTI-CMe between SE+ve and SE-ve types. The results showed that there were 7 amino acid differences between Yerong (SE-ve) and Franklin (SE+ve). Two types BTI-CMe were expressed in vitro and purified successfully. By adding the purified BTI-CMe into commercial beer, we found that both original turbidity and alcohol chill haze degree of beer were increased. BTI-CMe of SE-ve haplotype showed a lower level of haze formation in beer than SE+ve haplotype. Response surface methodology (RSM) was conducted to determine the relationship between BTI-CMe and tannic acid, and their effects on haze formation. It was found that (1) higher content of BTI-CMe and/or tannic acid in beer would give rise to higher turbidity; (2) there was a significant interaction between BTI-CMe and tannic acid; (3) haze activity disparity of BTI-CMe between two types was significantly and positively correlated with the tannic acid concentration.

Identification of QTLs associated with haze active proteins in barley

Haze formation in beer is a trait closely related to beer quality and it is largely affected by the haze active proteins (HAPs) in barley (Hordeum vulgare L.). Up to date, little is known about the genetics of HAPs and relevant genes. In this study, we obtained the beer samples from a Franklin/Yerong double haploid (DH) population and the two parents using micro-malting and micro-brewing, and determined tannin-related HAPs. It was found that there was a wide difference in HAPs among all lines of the DH population, and Yerong had a higher HAPs content than Franklin. Quantitative trait locus (QTL) analysis identified five QTLs associated with HAPs in beer, being located on chromosomes 1HS, 5HL and 6HS, respectively. The loci QHAP1.FrYe-1H and QHAP2.FrYe-1H were overlapped in the short arm of chromosome 1H, and they controlled HAP1 and HAP2, respectively. Moreover, the candidate genes were also predicted based on published whole barley genome sequence and corresponding gene annotations.