Plant Physiology：浙大农学院蔬菜所杨晓东发表表观遗传机制介导的

高产、早熟等性状一直是蔬菜作物育种的重要目标，育种家通过经典遗传学方法取得了大量成果，使蔬菜作物的产量、熟性得到了明显改良。对于产量、早熟性等复杂数量性状，迫切需要种质创新方法的突破，以期实现更高水平的品种改良的目的。尽管众多研究已发现表观遗传机制与植物杂种优势、自交退化、表型可塑性和环境胁迫响应等相关，然而没有证据明确证实表观遗传在植物种质创新方面的应用案例。

杨晓东关于表观遗传机制介导的番茄高产种质创新研究发现了MSH1(Muts Homolog 1)基因通过表观遗传机制介导了番茄植株的生长发育重组(developmental reprogramming)现象，这一发育重组现象可在后代中稳定遗传下来，主要表现出番茄植株生长势强、高产、早熟等性状，并且这一重组现象可以通过嫁接来实现。该研究成果表现出其在核心骨干亲本种质改良方面的巨大应用潜力，预期可在实现突破性地提高产量、早熟性等重要育种目标方面广泛应用。

这项研究成果“MSH1-Derived Epigenetic Breeding Potential in Tomato”于2015年5月在线发表在Plant Physiology(IF=7.394)上，该论文的第一作者为农学院蔬菜所张明方教授课题组博士生杨晓东，他以联合培养博士生身份在美国内布拉斯加大学Sally Mackenzie教授实验室从事研究，Sally Mackenzie教授是我校“求是讲座教授”。

MSH1-Derived EpiGENEtic Breeding Potential in Tomato

原文摘要：

Evidence is compelling in support of a naturally occurring epigenetic influence on phenotype expression in land plants, although discerning the epigenetic contribution is difficult. Agriculturally important attributes like heterosis, inbreeding depression, phenotypic plasticity, and environmental stress response are thought to have significant epigenetic components, but unequivocal demonstration of this is often infeasible. Here, we investigate gene silencing of a single nuclear gene, MutS HOMOLOG1 (MSH1), in the tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) ‘Rutgers’ to effect developmental reprogramming of the plant. The condition is heritable in subsequent generations independent of the MSH1-RNA interference transgene. Crossing these transgene-null, developmentally altered plants to the isogenic cv Rutgers wild type results in progeny lines that show enhanced, heritable growth vigor under both greenhouse and field conditions. This boosted vigor appears to be graft transmissible and is partially reversed by treatment with the methylation inhibitor 5-azacytidine, implying the influence of mobile, epigenetic factors and DNA methylation changes. These data provide compelling evidence for the feasibility of epigenetic breeding in a crop plant.

doi:10.1104/pp.15.00075

作者：杨晓东