Melon (Cucumis melo L., 2n = 24) belongs to the family Cucurbitaceae and is an important vegetable crop. This study aimed to investigate the quantitative trait loci (QTL) of flowering-related traits to understand the genetic inheritance and candidate gene of flowering-related traits. The specific length amplified fragment sequencing (SLAF-seq) technology was used to construct a genetic map of 115 individual plants in the melon F₂ population. A total of 82.6 Gb of data were generated using SLAF-seq. A genetic map was constructed with 10,596 specific length amplified fragment markers in 12 linkage groups, which spanned 1,383.88 cM with an average distance of 0.13 cM between markers. Ten QTL of flowering-related traits were detected, which explained 2.16–19.34% of the phenotypic variance. The logarithm of the odds (LOD) values ranged from 3.5 to 24.9. Ninety-four F_2:3 families were used for mapping mft and fft in candidate regions by simple sequence repeat (SSR) and cleaved amplified polymorphic sequences (CAPS) markers. The mapping results showed that mft2.1 and fft2.1 were located in the same region, between CmSSR07071 and CmSSR07102. By gene annotation, 36 candidate genes were detected in this region, 26 of which were annotated. Quantitative reverse transcription–polymerase chain reaction (PCR) showed that candidate genes, including WRKY transcription factor and AP2/ERF and B3 domain-containing transcription factor, were differentially expressed in female and male flowers in the flower budding stages. These genes may provide the theoretical foundation for gene cloning and genetic transformation in melons.

中文翻译：

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甜瓜开花相关性状的QTL分析

甜瓜（Cucumis melo L., 2 n = 24）属于葫芦科，是重要的蔬菜作物。本研究旨在调查开花相关性状的数量性状位点（QTL），以了解开花相关性状的遗传遗传和候选基因。_{采用特定长度扩增片段测序（SLAF-seq）技术构建了甜瓜F 2}中115株单株的遗传图谱人口。使用 SLAF-seq 生成了总共 82.6 Gb 的数据。用 12 个连锁群中的 10,596 个特定长度的扩增片段标记构建了遗传图谱，跨越 1,383.88 cM，标记之间的平均距离为 0.13 cM。检测到10个开花相关性状QTL，解释了2.16-19.34%的表型变异。赔率 (LOD) 值的对数范围从 3.5 到 24.9。94 个 F _2:3家族用于通过简单序列重复 (SSR) 和切割扩增多态序列 (CAPS) 标记在候选区域中映射mft和fft 。映射结果显示mft2.1和fft2.1位于同一区域，在 CmSSR07071 和 CmSSR07102 之间。通过基因注释，在该区域检测到36个候选基因，其中26个被注释。定量逆转录-聚合酶链反应（PCR）显示候选基因，包括WRKY转录因子和AP2/ERF和B3结构域的转录因子，在花蕾期的雌花和雄花中差异表达。这些基因可能为甜瓜基因克隆和遗传转化提供理论基础。