Transcriptome analysis reveals insights into regulatory networks of prickle formation in Rosa multiflora and the role of RmNAC43 in lignin biosynthesis during prickle hardening

Wan Zhu; Zhe Zhang; Junjie Wu; Yuwan You; Manzhu Bao; Guogui Ning; Bo Zheng; Wei Zhang

doi:10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2025.145515

Transcriptome analysis reveals insights into regulatory networks of prickle formation in Rosa multiflora and the role of RmNAC43 in lignin biosynthesis during prickle hardening

Int J Biol Macromol. 2025 Jun 24;319(Pt 2):145515. doi: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2025.145515. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Wan Zhu¹, Zhe Zhang², Junjie Wu³, Yuwan You⁴, Manzhu Bao⁵, Guogui Ning⁶, Bo Zheng⁷, Wei Zhang⁸

Affiliations

¹ National Key Laboratory for Germplasm Innovation & Utilization of Horticultural Crops, College of Horticulture and Forestry Sciences, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China; The Institute of Flowers Research, College of Horticulture and Forestry Sciences, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China. Electronic address: 421337460@qq.com.
² Institute of Microalgae Synthetic Biology and Green Manufacturing, School of Life Sciences, Jianghan University, Wuhan 430070, China. Electronic address: zzhe@jhun.edu.cn.
³ National Key Laboratory for Germplasm Innovation & Utilization of Horticultural Crops, College of Horticulture and Forestry Sciences, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China; The Institute of Flowers Research, College of Horticulture and Forestry Sciences, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China. Electronic address: wu_junjie@webmail.hzau.edu.cn.
⁴ National Key Laboratory for Germplasm Innovation & Utilization of Horticultural Crops, College of Horticulture and Forestry Sciences, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China; The Institute of Flowers Research, College of Horticulture and Forestry Sciences, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China. Electronic address: 1797435616@qq.com.
⁵ National Key Laboratory for Germplasm Innovation & Utilization of Horticultural Crops, College of Horticulture and Forestry Sciences, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China; The Institute of Flowers Research, College of Horticulture and Forestry Sciences, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China; Key Laboratory of Huazhong Urban Agriculture, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, College of Horticulture and Forestry Sciences, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China. Electronic address: mzbao@mail.hzau.edu.cn.
⁶ National Key Laboratory for Germplasm Innovation & Utilization of Horticultural Crops, College of Horticulture and Forestry Sciences, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China; The Institute of Flowers Research, College of Horticulture and Forestry Sciences, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China; Key Laboratory of Huazhong Urban Agriculture, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, College of Horticulture and Forestry Sciences, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China. Electronic address: ggning@mail.hzau.edu.cn.
⁷ National Key Laboratory for Germplasm Innovation & Utilization of Horticultural Crops, College of Horticulture and Forestry Sciences, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China. Electronic address: bo.zheng@mail.hzau.edu.cn.
⁸ National Key Laboratory for Germplasm Innovation & Utilization of Horticultural Crops, College of Horticulture and Forestry Sciences, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China; The Institute of Flowers Research, College of Horticulture and Forestry Sciences, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China; Key Laboratory of Huazhong Urban Agriculture, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, College of Horticulture and Forestry Sciences, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China. Electronic address: zhangw@mail.hzau.edu.cn.

PMID: 40571032
DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2025.145515

Abstract

Roses are among the most important ornamental/commercial plants worldwide. However, prickles on rose stems present difficulties in field management as well as inconveniences during harvesting and postharvest processes. The spatiotemporal dynamics and regulatory network of prickle formation remain unclear. We report a temporally resolved transcriptome obtained from prickle samples covering the entire development period of Rosa multiflora and a comparative transcriptome of R. multiflora and its prickleless variant. Joint analysis was conducted on two sets of RNA-seq data, and a total of 700 prickle-related genes were divided into four categories corresponding to the positive/negative regulation of prickle initiation and development. Among these genes, RmNAC43 was coexpressed with three laccase genes, and its expression increased sharply with prickle development. A heterologous expression system suggested that RmNAC43 participates in lignin deposition partly by regulating the laccase gene during prickle hardening. Collectively, these results provide novel insights into molecular-level biological events during prickle formation and constitute potentially valuable resources for future genetic improvements in rose and other prickle-bearing plants.