Fig 1.
Analysis of Differentially Expressed Genes (DEGs) between each library pair.
(A) Samples of Vaccinium ashei for RNA-seq. S1, leaf bud; S2, flower bud; S3, initial flower; S4, bloom flower; S5, pad fruit; S6, cup fruit. (B) Venn diagram of the DEGs in comparisons of five samples (numbers in circles represent the numbers of DEGs in different stages). (C) Numbers of up-regulated (up) and down-regulated (down) genes in the comparisons of five samples.
Fig 2.
Principle Component Analysis (PCA) of variability in DEGs observed across samples.
Colors are used to differentiate between samples: purple, blue, brown, red, green, and cyan represent leaf bud, flower bud, initial flower, bloom flower, pad fruit, and cup fruit, respectively.
Fig 3.
GO analysis between developmental stages in blueberry.
(A) S3/S2; (B) S4/S3; (C) S5/S4; (D) S6/S5. S2, S3, S4, S5, and S6 represent flower bud, initial flower, bloom flower, pad fruit, and cup fruit, respectively.
Fig 4.
Gene expression profiles of differentially expressed genes in four comparisons.
(A) S3/S2; (B) S4/S3; (C) S5/S4; (D) S6/S5. S2, S3, S4, S5, and S6 represent flower bud, initial flower, bloom flower, pad fruit, and cup fruit, respectively. Green represents genes down-regulated and red represents genes up-regulated. The abbreviations and full names of the genes involved are shown below: HAK5 (high affinity K+ transporter 5), MATE (multidrug and toxic compound extrusion efflux family protein efflux family protein), SUT4 (sucrose transporter 4), STP7 (sugar transporter protein 7), NRT1.5 (nitrate transporter 1.5), GASA1 (GAST1 protein homolog 1), AUX2 (auxin transporter−like protein 2), JAZ1 (jasmonate−zim−domain protein 1), ABA4 (abscisic acid (aba)−deficient 4), ABA3 (molybdenum cofactor sulfurase (LOS5)), ERF1 (ethylene response factor 1), IAA29 (indole-3-acetic acid inducible 29), IAA11 (indole-3-acetic acid inducible 11), AGL20 (AGAMOUS−like 20), CAB (chlorophyll A−B binding family protein), ARF19 (auxin response factor 19), ABP19A (auxin−binding protein ABP19a), JRG21 (jasmonate−regulated gene 21), GILP (GSH−induced LITAF domain protein), AGL104 (AGAMOUS−like 104), CLH1 (chlorophyllase 1), CHI (chalcone−flavanone isomerase family protein), CRF4 (cytokinin response factor 4), ARF18 (auxin response factor 18), ERF4 (ethylene−responsive transcription factor 4), ERF2 (ethylene−responsive transcription factor 2), CAB-10A (chlorophyll a−b binding protein CP24 10A, chloroplastic), SUC2 (sucrose−proton symporter 2), STP14 (sugar transporter 14), ABC (ABC transporter family protein), ABCG4 (ABC−2 type transporter family protein), PR5 (pathogenesis−related protein 5), JAZ10 (jasmonate-zim-domain protein 10), CIA2 (chloroplast import apparatus 2), CNX1 (calnexin 1), TPS9 (trehalose-phosphatase/synthase 9), PGSIP1 (plant glycogenin−like starch initiation protein 1), GH9B13 (glycosyl hydrolase 9B13), MYB86 (myb domain protein 86), BHLH70 (basic helix-loop-helix 70), LAT52 (anther−specific protein LAT52), NAC031 (Protein CUP-SHAPED COTYLEDON 3), AGL31 (AGAMOUS−like 31), FCA (flowering time control protein FCA), COL9 (CONSTANS−like 9).
Fig 5.
Validation of gene expression by qRT-PCR.
Expression levels of nine candidate genes—ABA3 (molybdenum cofactor sulfurase (LOS5)), AUX2 (auxin transporter-like protein 2), CAB (chlorophyll A-B binding family protein), CHI (chalcone-flavanone isomerase family protein), CLH1 (chlorophyllase 1), Disease resistance protein (CC-NBS-LRR class) family member, IAA11 (indole-3-acetic acid inducible 11), MATE (encoding a MATE efflux family protein), and SUT4 (sucrose transporter 4)—were determined at each stage using qRT-PCR analyses. S2, S3/S2, S4/S2, S5/S2 and S6/S2 represent flower bud, initial flower, bloom flower, pad fruit and cup fruit, respectively. The bars and error bars (Standard Deviation) represent the qPCR while the line represents the results of RNA-seq.