Comparative leaf transcriptome analysis of Lancaster vs. Non-Lancaster maize inbred lines revealing genetic background associated cold-responsive genes

Sequencing of 46 maize leaf whole transcriptome revealed 77 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between Lancaster and Non-Lancaster maize genetic resources under optimal growing conditions. Cold test of the subset of four Lancaster and four Non-Lancaster lines showed that the first were cold sensitive and the later cold tolerant, with the majority of identified DEGs showing FPKM values above the plate mean in Lancaster, but below the plate mean in Non-Lancaster subset. Cold induced expression analysis for revealed that, among seven tested DEGs, ATP-sulfurylase and photosystem II I encoding genes showed responsiveness to low temperatures in a genetic-background-dependent manner, likely contributing to different cold response/adaptability of Lancaster and Non-Lancaster lines. Overall design: Comparative leaf whole transcriptome analysis between Lancaster and Non-Lancaster maize genetic sources for 46 maize inbred lines grown in the greenhouse under the optimal conditions in order to determine main gene expression differences in their genetic background