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Evaluation of reference genes for expression studies in ash (Fraxinus spp.)

Formally Refereed

Abstract

Ash (Fraxinus spp.) is a dominant tree species in North America, in both managed and natural landscapes. However, due to the rapid invasion by the emerald ash borer (Agrilus planipennis), an exotic invasive insect pest, millions of North American ash trees have been killed. Real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RTq-PCR) is widely used for validating transcript levels in gene expression studies for which a good reference gene is mandatory. In the current study, we evaluated the stability of ten reference genes in at least five different tissues (phloem, roots, shoots, immature leaves, and mature leaves), and two developmental stages (young and old) among three ash species including the resistant Asian Manchurian ash (F. mandshurica) and two susceptible North American ash species (green—F. pennsylvanica and white—F. americana). Of the examined genes, the translation elongation factor alpha (eEF1α) was observed to be most stable and thus is recommended for RTq-PCR based gene expression studies in Fraxinus species. To our knowledge, this is the first report on the stability of reference genes across ash species (in different tissues and during development).

Keywords

Fraxinus spp., Real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction, Reference genes, GeNorm, Normfinder

Citation

Rivera-Vega,Loren; Mamidala, Praveen; Koch, Jennifer L.; Mason, Mary E.; Mittapalli, Omprakash. 2012. Evaluation of reference genes for expression studies in ash (Fraxinus spp.). Plant Molecular Biology Reporter. 30: 242-245.
Citations
https://www.fs.usda.gov/research/treesearch/41119