Anatomy characteristics and IbEXP1 gene expression of tuberization under ammonia nitrogen treatment in sweet potato

Abstract

This study chose Shangshu 19 (S19) and Jixu 23 (J23) categorized by valid tuber root number per plant as analyzing varieties and arranged treatment combinations consisted of two nitrogen forms ammonium nitrogen (AN) and amide nitrogen (XN) integrated with two nitrogen rates 60 kg hm-2 (LN60) and 180 kg hm-2 (HN180), using field and pot trial assays, plus a check treatment received no nitrogen supply in order to make research on the anatomical observation on sweet potato tuber root differentiation and expression characteristics of IbEXP1 gene associated with tuber root formation in ammonia nitrogen in 2014 and 2015. Our results showed that the storage root yield of Shangshu 19 associated with more valid tuber root number per plant was significantly higher than Jixu 23 at harvest stage, which was significant difference compared with each other. In addition, nitrogen levels and nitrogen forms had significant interaction effects. The 60 kg hm-2 ammonium nitrogen treatment in two sweet potato genotypes achieved the highest final storage root yield in field experiment and showed higher valid tuber root number per plant, which attributed to the younger tubers whose root diameter between 0.5 cm and 5.0 cm during the canopy closure period. It had been observed that 60 kg hm-2 ammonium nitrogen treatment possessed the most vessels in the primary xylem bundle and the lignified parenchyma cells of the stele tissues in the pre-cambial period, followed with possessing high level expression of IbEXP1 gene, the biggest root diameter and stele diameter and the most number of primary and secondary xylem bundles in the course of primary cambium growth. As the vascular cambium was initiated, relative expression of IbEXP1 gene at 60 kg hm-2 ammonium nitrogen treatment and the degree of parenchyma cells lignification were intermediate between no nitrogen application and high nitrogen treatments, however, the diameter of root and stele and the ratio of them were highest, which achieved the perfect harmony in lignification and division of parenchyma cells in tuberization.