Data from: Molecular evidence that the genes for dioecism and monoecism in Spinacia oleracea L. are located at different loci in a chromosomal region

Spinach (Spinacia oleracea L.) is widely known to be dioecious. However, monoecious plants can also occur in this species. Sex expression in dioecious spinach plants is controlled by a single gene pair termed X and Y. Our previous study showed that a single, incompletely dominant gene, which controls the monoecious condition in spinach line 03–336, should be allelic or linked to X/Y. Here, we developed 19 AFLP markers closely linked to the monoecious gene. The AFLP markers were mapped to a 38.2-cM chromosomal region that included the monoecious gene, which is bracketed between flanking markers with a distance of 7.1 cM. The four AFLP markers developed in our studies were converted into sequence-characterized amplified region (SCAR) markers, which are linked to both the monoecious gene and Y and are common to both populations segregating for the genes. Linkage analysis using the SCAR markers suggested that the monoecious gene (M) and Y are located in different intervals, between different marker pairs. Analysis of populations segregating for both M and Y also directly demonstrates linkage of the genes at a distance of ~12 cM. The data presented in this study may be useful for breeding dioecious and highly male monoecious lines utilized as the pollen parents for hybrid seed production, as well as for studies of the evolutionary history of sexual systems in this species, and can provide a molecular basis for positional cloning of the sex-determining genes.

菠菜（Spinacia oleracea L.）通常被认为是雌雄异株（dioecious）物种，但该物种中亦可出现雌雄同株（monoecious）植株。雌雄异株菠菜的性别表达由一对命名为X和Y的基因对调控。我们前期研究表明，菠菜品系03–336中控制雌雄同株性状的单个不完全显性基因，应与X/Y基因座等位或连锁。本研究开发了19个与雌雄同株基因紧密连锁的扩增片段长度多态性（AFLP）标记。上述AFLP标记被定位至一个包含该雌雄同株基因的38.2厘摩（cM）染色体区域，该基因位于间距为7.1 cM的两侧翼标记之间。本研究开发的4个AFLP标记被转化为序列特征化扩增区域（SCAR）标记，这些标记既与雌雄同株基因连锁，也与Y基因连锁，且在两个针对该性状分离的群体中均适用。利用SCAR标记进行的连锁分析表明，雌雄同株基因（M）与Y基因位于不同的标记区间内。对同时携带M和Y分离性状的群体进行分析，也直接证实了二者的连锁距离约为12 cM。本研究所得数据，既可用于培育用作杂交种子生产父本的雌雄异株及强雄性雌雄同株品系，也可为该物种性别系统演化历史的相关研究提供参考，同时可为性别决定基因的图位克隆奠定分子基础。