Alterations in soybean gene expression profile after foliar application of lipo-chitooligosaccharide (LCO) from Bradyrhizobium japonicum under sub-optimal temperature

Lipo-chitooligosaccharides (LCOs) produced by N2-fixing rhizobacteria initiate host nodule formation. Foliar application of LCOs has been shown to induce stress-related genes under optimal growth conditions. To study the effects of LCO foliar spray under stressed conditions, soybean seedlings grown at optimal temperature were exposed to sub-optimal temperature. After a 5-day acclimation period, the first trifoliolate leaves were sprayed with 10-7 M LCO (NodBj-V (C18:1, MeFuc)) produced by Bradyrhizobium japonicum, and harvested at 0 and 48 h following treatment. Microarray analysis was performed using Affymetrix GeneChip Soybean Genome Arrays. A total of 147 genes were differentially expressed 48 h after LCO treatment, including a number of stress-related genes and transcription factors. In addition, during the 48 h following treatment, hundreds of genes were differentially expressed in LCO-treated plants, indicating that the dynamic soybean foliar transcriptome was highly responsive to LCO treatment. The microarray data was supported by quantitative real-time PCR data.

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