Abstract
• Crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM), a specialized mode of photosynthesis, enables plant adaptation to water-limited environments and improves photosynthetic efficiency via a carbon concentrating mechanism. Kalanchoë fedtschenkoi is an obligate CAM model featuring a relatively small genome and easy stable transformation. But the molecular responses of regulation by light quality and intensity in CAM plants is still unknown.
• Here we present a genome-wide expression atlas of K. fedtschenkoi plants grown under 12h/12h photoperiod with different light quality (blue, red, far-red, white light) and intensity (0, 150, 250 and 1000 μmol m–2 s–1) based on RNA-Seq performed for mature leaf samples collected at dawn (2-h before the starting of lighting period) and dusk (2-h before the dark period).
• An eFP web browser was created for easy access of the gene expression data. Based on the expression atlas, we constructed a light-responsive co-expression network to reveal the potential regulatory relationships in K. fedtschenkoi. Furthermore, CAM-related sub-networks were highlighted to showcase genes relevant to CAM pathway, circadian clock and stomatal movement.
• This study provides a novel genomics resource for investigating the molecular mechanism underlying the light regulation of physiology and metabolism in CAM plants.
