Browsing by Author "Rana, Sumi"

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Foxtail millet (Setaria italica L.): a model for small millets
(Elsevier B.V., 2023) Pramitha, Lydia; Choudhary, Pooja; Rana, Sumi; Singh, Roshan Kumar; Das, Pronomita; Sharma, Shriya; Ravikesavan, R; Prasad, Manoj; Muthamilarasan, Mehanathan
Foxtail millet (Setaria italica L.) is a small millet predominantly cultivated in arid and semi-arid regions of the world. India is the second-largest producer of foxtail millet, next to China, and the crop has importance in the history and civilization of the human race in these two countries. Although the foxtail millet was widely cultivated in the ancient era, it has lost its importance with time and became a marginally grown crop catering to the nutritional requirements of a limited population. Despite this, the crop has excellent yield contributing to agronomic traits along with climate-resilient characteristics. Being a C4 panicoid species with a small diploid genome, short lifecycle, in-breeding nature, and close relationship with biofuel grasses, foxtail millet has recently been considered as a C4 model crop to understand several agronomically important traits, including stress tolerance. Given the importance, the genome sequence of foxtail millet and green foxtail (S. viridis) is now available. The postgenome era has seen several crop studies, which provided extensive genetic and genomic resources for crop improvement. Studies including genetic and genomic dissection of nutritional traits, response to biotic and abiotic stresses, water-use and nitrogen-use efficiencies, biofuel traits, and deciphering the photosynthetic machinery have provided insights into the novel genes and pathways underlying the individual traits. This has also provided a roadmap for deploying similar studies in other millets using foxtail millet as a model. In this context, the chapter describes the botany, nutritional significance, global distribution, and production technologies being implemented in foxtail millet cultivation. The chapter also summarizes the outcomes of the studies being pursued to decode complex traits and provide a roadmap for executing similar work in other millet crops.
Genetic determinants of micronutrient traits in graminaceous crops to combat hidden hunger
(Springer Nature Publishing AG, 2021) Sushree, Shyamli P; Rana, Sumi; Suranjika, Sandhya; Muthamilarasan, Mehanathan; Parida, Ajay; Prasad, Manoj
Key message: Improving the nutritional content of graminaceous crops is imperative to ensure nutritional security, wherein omics approaches play pivotal roles in dissecting this complex trait and contributing to trait improvement. Abstract: Micronutrients regulate the metabolic processes to ensure the normal functioning of the biological system in all living organisms. Micronutrient defciency, thereby, can be detrimental that can result in serious health issues. Grains of graminaceous crops serve as an important source of micronutrients to the human population; however, the rise in hidden hunger and malnutrition indicates an insufciency in meeting the nutritional requirements. Improving the elemental composition and nutritional value of the graminaceous crops using conventional and biotechnological approaches is imperative to address this issue. Identifying the genetic determinants underlying the micronutrient biosynthesis and accumulation is the frst step toward achieving this goal. Genetic and genomic dissection of this complex trait has been accomplished in major cereals, and several genes, alleles, and QTLs underlying grain micronutrient content were identifed and characterized. However, no comprehensive study has been reported on minor cereals such as small millets, which are rich in micronutrients and other bioactive compounds. A comparative narrative on the reports available in major and minor Graminaceae species will illustrate the knowledge gained from studying the micronutrient traits in major cereals and provides a roadmap for dissecting this trait in other minor species, including millets. In this context, this review explains the progress made in studying micronutrient traits in major cereals and millets using omics approaches. Moreover, it provides insights into deploying integrated omics approaches and strategies for genetic improvement in micronutrient traits in graminaceous crops.
Genomic dissection and expression analysis of stress-responsive genes in C4 panicoid models, Setaria italica and Setaria viridis
(Elsevier B.V., 2020) Muthamilarasan, Mehanathan; Singh, Roshan Kumar; Suresh, Bonthala Venkata; Rana, Sumi; Dulani, Priya; Prasad, Manoj
The study reports the identification and expression profiling of five major classes of C4 pathway-specific genes, namely, carbonic anhydrase (CaH), phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase (PEPC), pyruvate orthophosphate dikinase (PPDK), NADP-dependent malate dehydrogenase (MDH) and NADP-dependent malic enzyme (NADP-ME), in the model species, Setaria italica and Setaria viridis. A total of 42 and 41 genes were identified in S. italica and S. viridis, respectively. Further analysis revealed that segmental and tandem duplications have contributed to the expansion of these gene families. RNA-Seq derived expression profiles of the gene family members showed their differential expression pattern in tissues and dehydration stress. Comparative genome mapping and Ks dating provided insights into their duplication and divergence in the course of evolution. Expression profiling of candidate genes in contrasting S. italica cultivars subjected to abiotic stresses and hormone treatments showed distinct stress-specific upregulation of SiαCaH1, SiβCaH5, SiPEPC2, SiPPDK2, SiMDH8, and SiNADP-ME5 in the tolerant cultivar. Overexpression of SiNADP-ME5 in heterologous yeast system enabled the transgenic cells to survive and grow in dehydration stress conditions, which highlights the putative role of SiNADP-ME5 in conferring tolerance to dehydration stress. Altogether, the study highlights key genes that could be potential candidates for elucidating their functional roles in abiotic stress response.
De novo transcriptome analysis identifies key genes involved in dehydration stress response in kodo millet (Paspalum scrobiculatum L.)
(Elsevier B.V., 2022) Suresh, Bonthala Venkata; Choudhary, Pooja; Aggarwal, Pooja Rani; Rana, Sumi; Singh, Roshan Kumar; Ravikesavan, Rajasekaran; Prasad, Manoj; Muthamilarasan, Mehanathan
Kodo millet (Paspalum scrobiculatum L.) is a small millet species known for its excellent nutritional and climate-resilient traits. To understand the genes and pathways underlying dehydration stress tolerance of kodo millet, the transcriptome of cultivar ‘CO3’ subjected to dehydration stress (0 h, 3 h, and 6 h) was sequenced. The study generated 239.1 million clean reads that identified 9201, 9814, and 2346 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in 0 h vs. 3 h, 0 h vs. 6 h, and 3 h vs. 6 h libraries, respectively. The DEGs were found to be associated with vital molecular pathways, including hormone metabolism and signaling, antioxidant scavenging, photosynthesis, and cellular metabolism, and were validated using qRT-PCR. Also, a higher abundance of uncharacterized genes expressed during stress warrants further studies to characterize this class of genes to understand their role in dehydration stress response. Altogether, the study provides insights into the transcriptomic response of kodo millet during dehydration stress.
Recent advances in small RNA mediated plant-virus interactions
(Taylor & Francis Group, 2019) Prasad, Ashish; Sharma, Namisha; Muthamilarasan, Mehanathan; Rana, Sumi; Prasad, Manoj
Small RNAs (sRNA) are reported to play pivotal roles in the epigenetic and post-transcriptional regulation of gene expression during growth, development, and stress response in plants. Recently, the involvement of two different classes of sRNAs namely, miRNAs (microRNAs), and siRNAs (small interfering RNAs) in biotic stress response has been underlined. Notably, during virus infection, these sRNAs deploy antiviral defense by regulating the gene expression of the modulators of host defense pathways. As a counter defense, viruses have evolved strategic pathways involving the production of suppressors that interfere with the host silencing machinery. This molecular arms race between the sophisticated gene regulatory mechanism of host plants fine-tuned by sRNAs and the defense response exhibited by the virus has gained much attention among the researchers. So far, several reports have been published showing the mechanistic insights on sRNA-regulated defense mechanism in response to virus infection in several crop plants. In this context, our review enumerates the molecular mechanisms underlying host immunity against viruses mediated by sRNAs, the counter defense strategies employed by viruses to surpass this immunogenic response and the advances made in our understanding of plant-virus interactions. Altogether, the report would be insightful for the researchers working to decode the sRNA-mediated defense response in crop plants challenged with virus infection.