Integration analysis of miRNA-mRNA pairs between two contrasting genotypes reveals the molecular mechanism of jujube (Ziziphus jujuba Mill.) response to high-temperature stress

Abstract

Abstract With global warming, high temperature (HT) has become one of the most common abiotic stresses resulting in significant yield losses in crops, especially for jujube (Ziziphus jujuba Mill.) which is an important temperate economic crop cultivated worldwide. This study explored the coping mechanism of jujube to HT stress at the transcriptional and post-transcriptional levels. High-throughput sequencing analyses of miRNA and mRNA were performed on jujube leaves which were collected from “Fucumi” (heat-tolerant) and “Junzao” (heat-sensitive) cultivars subjected to HT stress (42℃) for 0, 1, 3, 5, and 7 days, respectively. The results showed that 45 known miRNAs, 482 novel miRNAs and 13884 differentially expressed mRNAs (DEMs) were identified. Among them, integrated analysis of miRNA target genes prediction and mRNA-seq obtained 1306 differentially expressed miRNAs-mRNAs pairs, including 484, 769, and 865 DEMIs-DEMs pairs discovered in “Fucuimi”, “Junzao” and two genotypes comparative groups, respectively. Furthermore, functional enrichment analysis of 1306 DEMs revealed that plant-pathogen interaction, starch and sucrose metabolism, spliceosome, and plant hormone signal transduction were crucial pathways in jujube leaves response to HT stress. This study further proved the regulatory role of miRNAs in the response to HT stress in plants and will provide a theoretical foundation for the innovation and cultivation of heat-tolerant varieties.