Table_6_Weighted gene co-expression network analysis revealed the key pathways and hub genes of potassium regulating cotton root adaptation to salt stress.xlsx

Soil salinization is one of the main abiotic stresses affecting cotton yield and planting area. Potassium application has been proven to be an important strategy to reduce salt damage in agricultural production. However, the mechanism of potassium regulating the salt adaptability of cotton has not been fully elucidated. In the present research, the appropriate potassium application rate for alleviating salt damage of cotton based on different K+/Na+ ratios we screened, and a gene co-expression network based on weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) using the transcriptome data sets treated with CK (0 mM NaCl), S (150 mM NaCl), and SK8 (150 mM NaCl + 9.38 mM K2SO4) was constructed. In this study, four key modules that are highly related to potassium regulation of cotton salt tolerance were identified, and the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathway, tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle and glutathione metabolism pathway were identified as the key biological processes and metabolic pathways for potassium to improve cotton root salt adaptability. In addition, 21 hub genes and 120 key candidate genes were identified in this study, suggesting that they may play an important role in the enhancement of salt adaptability of cotton by potassium. The key modules, key biological pathways and hub genes discovered in this study will provide a new understanding of the molecular mechanism of potassium enhancing salinity adaptability in cotton, and lay a theoretical foundation for the improvement and innovation of high-quality cotton germplasm.

土壤盐渍化是制约棉花产量与种植面积的主要非生物胁迫之一。钾肥施用已被证实为农业生产中减轻盐害的重要手段，但钾调控棉花盐适应性的分子机制尚未得到全面阐明。本研究基于不同K+/Na+比筛选得到缓解棉花盐害的适宜钾肥施用量，并利用经CK（0 mM NaCl）、S（150 mM NaCl）及SK8（150 mM NaCl + 9.38 mM 硫酸钾）处理的转录组数据集，通过加权基因共表达网络分析（weighted gene co-expression network analysis, WGCNA）构建了基因共表达网络。本研究共鉴定得到4个与钾调控棉花耐盐性高度相关的关键模块，并明确丝裂原活化蛋白激酶（mitogen-activated protein kinase, MAPK）信号通路、三羧酸（tricarboxylic acid, TCA）循环及谷胱甘肽代谢通路为钾提升棉花根系盐适应性的关键生物学过程与代谢通路。此外，本研究还鉴定得到21个枢纽基因（hub genes）与120个关键候选基因，提示这些基因可能在钾增强棉花盐适应性的过程中发挥重要调控作用。本研究发现的关键模块、核心生物学通路与枢纽基因，将为解析钾提升棉花盐适应性的分子机制提供全新视角，并为优质棉花种质的改良与创新奠定坚实的理论基础。