Subgenome-dominant expression and alternative splicing in response to Sclerotinia infection in polyploid Brassica napus and progenitors

Polyploidy has played an extensive role in the evolution of flowering plants. Allopolyploids, with subgenomes containing duplicated gene pairs called homeologs, can show rapid transcriptome changes including novel alternative splicing (AS) patterns. The extent to which abiotic stress modulates AS of homeologs is a nascent topic in polyploidy research. We subjected both resynthesized and natural lines of polyploid Brassica napus, along with the progenitors Brassica rapa and Brassica oleracea, to infection with the fungal pathogen Sclerotinia sclerotiorum. RNA-sequencing analyses revealed widespread divergence between polyploid subgenomes in both gene expression and AS patterns. Resynthesized B. napus displayed significantly more A and C subgenome biased homeologs under pathogen infection than during uninfected growth. Differential AS (DAS) in response to infection was highest in natural B. napus (12 709 DAS events) and lower in resynthesized B. napus (8863 DAS events). Natural B. napus had more upregulated events and fewer downregulated events. There was a global expression bias towards the B. oleracea-derived (C) subgenome in both resynthesized and natural B. napus, enhanced by widespread non-parental downregulation of the B. rapa-derived (A) homeolog. In the resynthesized B. napus, this resulted in a disproportionate C subgenome contribution to the pathogen defense response, characterized by biases in both transcript expression levels and the proportion of induced genes. Our results elucidate the complex ways in which Sclerotinia infection affects expression and AS of homeologous genes in resynthesized and natural B. napus.

Automated summary

Polyploidy has had a significant impact on the evolution of flowering plants. Allopolyploids, particularly Brassica napus, show extensive changes in gene expression and alternative splicing patterns when infected with the fungal pathogen Sclerotinia sclerotiorum. RNA-sequencing analyses reveal these differences and their role in enhancing the defense response against the pathogen.