Acta Agriculturae Boreali-Sinica ›› 2026, Vol. 41 ›› Issue (4): 99-111. doi: 10.7668/hbnxb.20196084

Special Issue: Oil crops Drought and water saving Biotechnology

• Crop Genetics & Breeding·Germplasm Resources·Biotechnology • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Transcriptome-based Identification of Key Genes Involved in Drought Stress Response in Flax

HE Li1, FU Dandan1, DOU Chenxi1, WANG Na2, LI Jun3   

  1. 1 School of Biological and Pharmaceutical Engineering, Lanzhou Jiaotong University, Lanzhou 730000, China
    2 Jingtai County Agricultural Technology Extension Service Centre, Baiyin 730400, China
    3 Wuwei Jinyun Seed Industry Co., Ltd., Wuwei 733000, China
  • Received:2025-04-24 Published:2026-08-28

Abstract:

In order to uncover key genes involved in flax's response to drought stress and elucidate the underlying molecular mechanisms,thereby providing theoretical support for breeding drought-resistant varieties.Using roots of the drought-resistant flax cultivar Tianya 13 as experimental material,drought stress was simulated with different concentrations(5%,10%,20%,30%)of polyethylene glycol(PEG).Based on the analysis of physiological indicators such as root length,root thickness,and dry/fresh weight ratio,20% PEG was identified as the optimal stress concentration,under which the above indicators were significantly reduced by 31.63%,30.50%,and 13.39 percentage points,respectively,compared to the control.Subsequently,Illumina transcriptome sequencing was performed on roots subjected to drought stress at different time points(8,16,24 h),identifying 5 428,5 304,and 3 603 differentially expressed genes(DEGs)at each time point,respectively.KEGG enrichment analysis revealed that these DEGs were significantly enriched in key pathways such as carbohydrate metabolism(12 genes),betaine biosynthesis(4 genes),and the antioxidant defense system(36 genes).qRT-PCR validation of selected DEGs confirmed expression trends consistent with the RNA-seq results,verifying data reliability.This study systematically reveals,that flax enhances drought tolerance through the coordinated regulation of osmotic adjustment substance(e.g.,betaine)synthesis,energy metabolism reprogramming(carbohydrate metabolism),and reactive oxygen species scavenging mechanisms.It provides important theoretical foundations and candidate gene resources for molecular design breeding in flax.

Key words: Flax, Drought stress, Transcriptomics, Drought resistance genes

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Cite this article

HE Li, FU Dandan, DOU Chenxi, WANG Na, LI Jun. Transcriptome-based Identification of Key Genes Involved in Drought Stress Response in Flax[J]. Acta Agriculturae Boreali-Sinica, 2026, 41(4): 99-111. doi: 10.7668/hbnxb.20196084.

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