Identification And Analysis Of MiRNA And Flower Development Specific Genes In Wheat

Large-scale cDNA sequencing produced millions of ESTs representing differentiated biochemical and functional states in different tissues. EST analysis can be used for gene discovery and gene expression profiling. Genes specifically expressed in wheat flower were identified using a computer-based strategy in this study.153 contigs specifically expressed in flower were identified from 77657 wheat contigs. Specific expression of 11 genes was validated by the result of RT-PCR. Functional annotations showed these gene specifically expressed in flower are related to several pathways such as alkane biosynthesis, flavonoid biosynthesis and ethylene biosynthesis.MicroRNAs are a class of endogenous small non-coding RNAs about 20-24nt long which play an important role in the development of plant. Using previously known miRNAs from plant in the miRBase database against EST and GSS databases, we identified 41 potential miRNAs in wheat. Potential targets except miR395 and miR399 were predicted by searching EST databases, most of which are transcription factor. Five wheat miRNAs were analyzed by RT-PCR, and the expression of four was tissue specificity.