Cistanche deserticola is a plant used both as food and medicine. We are interested in understanding how C. deserticola responds to environmental conditions. Samples were collected from three ecotypes grown in saline-alkali land, grassland and sandy land. Transcriptome and metabolome analysis were performed by using RNA-seq and LC-ESI-MS/MS. Among 578 metabolites identified, 218, 209 and 215 compounds were found differentially produced among the three ecotypes. Particularly, 2'-acetylacteoside, belonging to phenylethanoid glycosides (PhGs) is the most significantly differentially produced with a VIP > 0.5 and fold change > 2, representing a potential chemical marker to distinguish the three ecotypes. RNA-Seq analysis revealed 52,043 unigenes, and 947, 632 and 97 of them were found differentially expressed among the three ecotypes. Analysis of the correlation between the metabolome profiles and transcriptome profiles among three ecotypes identified that the 12 key genes related to PhGs biosynthesis were differentially expressed. Particularly, the expression of PAL, ALDH and GOT genes were significantly up-regulated in saline-alkali land compared to the other two. In summary, we found PhGs content was higher in saline-alkali land compared with other ecotypes. This is likely due to the up-regulation of the PhGs biosynthetic genes in response to the saline-alkali conditions.

中文翻译：

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代谢组和转录组分析揭示了肉Ci蓉的三种生态型的质量变异和潜在调控。

肉stan蓉是一种既用作食品又用作药物的植物。我们有兴趣了解C. deserticola如何应对环境条件。从在盐碱地，草地和沙地上生长的三种生态型中收集了样本。转录组和代谢组分析通过使用RNA-seq和LC-ESI-MS / MS进行。在鉴定出的578种代谢产物中，发现三种生态型之间产生差异的218、209和215种化合物。尤其是，属于苯乙醚类糖苷（PhGs）的2'-乙酰基糖苷最明显地产生差异，其VIP> 0.5，倍数变化> 2，代表了区分这三种生态型的潜在化学标记。RNA-Seq分析显示52,043个单基因，其中947、632和97个在三种生态型中差异表达。通过分析三种生态型之间的代谢组谱和转录组谱之间的相关性，可以确定与PhGs生物合成相关的12个关键基因是差异表达的。特别是，与其他两个地区相比，盐碱地中的PAL，ALDH和GOT基因表达明显上调。总而言之，我们发现盐碱地的PhGs含量高于其他生态型。这可能是由于PhGs生物合成基因响应于盐碱条件而上调所致。与其他两个地区相比，盐碱地的ALDH和GOT基因显着上调。总而言之，我们发现盐碱地的PhGs含量高于其他生态型。这可能是由于PhGs生物合成基因响应于盐碱条件而上调所致。与其他两个地区相比，盐碱地的ALDH和GOT基因显着上调。总而言之，我们发现盐碱地的PhGs含量高于其他生态型。这可能是由于PhGs生物合成基因响应于盐碱条件而上调所致。