Senescence is an internally systematized degeneration process leading to death in plants. Leaf yellowing, one of the most prominent features of plant aging may lead to reduced crop yields. The molecular mechanism of responses to senescence in soybean leaves is not completely clear. In our research, two soybean varieties were selected with different stay-green traits: stay-green variety (BN106) and non-stay-green variety (KF14). RNA samples extracted from the leaves of two varieties were sequenced and compared using high-throughput sequencing. Six key enzyme genes in chlorophyll degradation pathways were studied to analyze the changes in their expression at seedling, flowering and maturation stage. Meanwhile, the construction of the genetic transformation process had been constructed to identify the function of putative gene by RNA-interference. A total of 4329 DEGs were involved in 52 functional groups and 254 KEGG pathways. Twelve genes encoding senescence-associated and inducible chloroplast stay-green protein showed significant differential expression. MDCase and PAO have a significant expression in BN106 that may be the key factors affecting the maintenance of green characteristics. In addition, the function of GmSGR s has been identified by genetic transformation. The loss of GmSGR s may cause soybean seeds to change from yellow to green. In summary, our results revealed fundamental information about the molecular mechanism of aging in soybeans with different stay-green characteristics. The work of genetic transformation lays a foundation for putative gene function studies that could contribute to postpone aging in soybeans.

中文翻译：

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高通量测序揭示决定大豆保持绿色特性的分子机制

衰老是导致植物死亡的内部系统化退化过程。叶子变黄是植物衰老最突出的特征之一，可能会导致作物产量下降。大豆叶片响应衰老的分子机制尚不完全清楚。在我们的研究中，我们选择了两个具有不同留绿性状的大豆品种：留绿品种 (BN106) 和非留绿品种 (KF14)。使用高通量测序对从两个品种的叶子中提取的 RNA 样品进行测序和比较。研究了叶绿素降解途径中的6个关键酶基因，分析了它们在幼苗、开花和成熟阶段的表达变化。同时，构建了遗传转化过程的构建，以通过RNA干扰来鉴定推定基因的功能。共有 4329 个 DEGs 涉及 52 个功能组和 254 个 KEGG 通路。编码衰老相关和诱导型叶绿体保持绿色蛋白的 12 个基因显示出显着的差异表达。MDCase和PAO在BN106中有显着的表达，可能是影响绿色特性维持的关键因素。此外，GmSGR s 的功能已通过遗传转化确定。GmSGR s 的损失可能会导致大豆种子从黄色变为绿色。总之，我们的研究结果揭示了具有不同保持绿色特性的大豆老化分子机制的基本信息。遗传转化工作为可能有助于延缓大豆衰老的假定基因功能研究奠定了基础。