De Novo Assembly and Characterization of the Seed Germination Transcriptomes of Sicyos angulatus

Sicyos angulatus has become an important invasive plant exhibiting good ecological adaptability and strong competitive ability. However, studies on this plant at the molecular level are limited by a lack of sequencing data. The present study obtained transcriptome sequences and gene expression profiles using RNA-Seq during S. angulatus seed germination. In total, RNA-Seq generated 491,967,468 reads, which were de novo assembled and 127,874 unigenes with N50 length of 807 bp. About 34.9% of the unigenes (44,660) were annotated against the protein databases, and 35,176 coding sequences were determined. During S. angulatus seed germination, over 127,860 unigenes were expressed and 66,664 unigenes differentially expressed genes (DEGs), among which 8919 DEGs were similar in pairwise comparison. Gene Ontology (GO) analysis of DEGs revealed that genes related to post-embryonic development, meristem development, and photosynthesis were enriched. In addition, the GO term “plant hormone signal transduction pathway” was also enriched in the DEGs. Important changes in genes expression related to auxin and gibberellin signal transduction might possibly be associated with S. angulatus seed germination. The findings of this study provide a foundation for research on S. angulatus that may contribute to prevent further invasion of this plant, consequently protecting the environment. © 2021 Friends Science Publishers