Integrative Transcriptome and Proteome Analysis Reveals the Absorption and Metabolism of Selenium in Tea Plants [ Camellia sinensis (L.) O. Kuntze]

Hengze Ren; Xiaoman Li; Lina Guo; Lu Wang; Xinyuan Hao; Jianming Zeng

doi:10.3389/fpls.2022.848349

Integrative Transcriptome and Proteome Analysis Reveals the Absorption and Metabolism of Selenium in Tea Plants [ Camellia sinensis (L.) O. Kuntze]

Front Plant Sci. 2022 Feb 24:13:848349. doi: 10.3389/fpls.2022.848349. eCollection 2022.

Authors

Hengze Ren¹, Xiaoman Li^{1

2}, Lina Guo¹, Lu Wang¹, Xinyuan Hao¹, Jianming Zeng¹

Affiliations

¹ National Center for Tea Improvement, Key Laboratory of Tea Biology and Resources Utilization, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Tea Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hangzhou, China.
² College of Horticulture, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, China.

Abstract

Certain tea plants (Camellia sinensis) have the ability to accumulate selenium. In plants, the predominant forms of bioavailable Se are selenite (SeO₃ ^2-) and selenate (SeO₄ ^2-). We applied transcriptomics and proteomics to hydroponically grown plants treated with selenite or selenate for 48 h in the attempt to elucidate the selenium absorption and assimilation mechanisms in tea. A total of 1,844 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and 691 differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) were obtained by comparing the Na₂SeO₃ and Na₂SeO₄ treatments against the control. A GO analysis showed that the genes related to amino acid and protein metabolism and redox reaction were strongly upregulated in the plants under the Na₂SeO₃ treatment. A KEGG pathway analysis revealed that numerous genes involved in amino acid and glutathione metabolism were upregulated, genes and proteins associated with glutathione metabolism and ubiquinone and terpenoid-quinone biosynthesis were highly expressed. Genes participating in DNA and RNA metabolism were identified and proteins related to glutathione metabolism were detected in tea plants supplemented with Na₂SeO₄. ABC, nitrate and sugar transporter genes were differentially expressed in response to selenite and selenate. Phosphate transporter (PHT3;1a, PHT1;3b, and PHT1;8) and aquaporin (NIP2;1) genes were upregulated in the presence of selenite. Sulfate transporter (SULTR1;1 and SULTR2;1) expression increased in response to selenate exposure. The results of the present study have clarified Se absorption and metabolism in tea plants, and play an important theoretical reference significance for the breeding and cultivation of selenium-enriched tea varieties.

Keywords: Camellia sinensis; proteome; selenate; selenite; transcriptome.