Comparative Transcriptome Analysis Reveals Color Formation Mechanism in Two Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) Cultivars

Anthocyanins are important secondary metabolites in wheat. Although some genes involved in anthocyanin biosynthesis had been reported, a more depth understanding of molecular mechanisms underlying wheat anthocyanin biosynthesis is needed. In this study, we found that the anthocyanin content of Ziyou-5 was significantly higher than that of Liangxing-66. Further the transcriptome analysis between the wheat varieties Liangxing-66 (yellow wheat) and Ziyou-5 (purple wheat) were performed and the results showed that 9906 (3772 downregulated, 6134 upregulated) differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were detected and mainly enriched in the flavonoid biosynthesis, plant hormone, phenolamides and antioxidant pathways. The qRT-PCR results showed that the transcription profiles of these DEGs were consistent with transcriptomic data. Co-expression analysis revealed that the transcription factors, such as ERF, bHLH, and MYB were involved in the regulation of these genes in different pathways. Thus, our study will provide new insights on molecular mechanisms underlying wheat anthocyanin biosynthesis and provide some candidate genes for wheat breeding.