Peng Sun

Background:The genus Artocarpus includes about 70 species, such as the economically important jackfruit and breadfruit, which serve as vital sources of food, timber, and medicine in the tropics. However, systematic research and genetic improvement have been restricted by the scarcity and fragmentation of available genomic data. Methods: Here, we developed the Artocarpus Genome Database (ArGD), a publicly accessible, comprehensive research platform dedicated to this genus. ArGD centrally integrates high-quality genomic sequences from seven Artocarpus genomes, along with related transcriptomic data and detailed functional annotations. Results: Beyond basic data retrieval, ArGD features a suite of advanced visualization and analysis modules, including BLAST, JBrowse, expression heatmaps, volcano plots, synteny viewers, ArtocarpusCYC metabolic interface, and Gene Ontology (GO)/KEGG enrichment analyses. Additionally, ArGD provides online identification tools for gene families related to fruit aroma and secondary metabolism. Conclusions: Overall, ArGD serves as a valuable resource for functional genomics and comparative studies in Artocarpus, facilitating future research and data-driven studies of genetic improvement.

Gaillardia plants have been widely cultivated in China and have become an important component of garden landscaping. Different from the common ligulate ray floret, the cornflower-like (funnel-shaped) ray floret is a special phenotype variation in Gaillardia species. Previous studies revealed that CYC-like genes could shape the floret phenotype in Compositae. To reveal the molecular mechanism of the cornflower-like phenotype, we checked the capitulum transcriptomes of several cultivars of Gaillardia that possess different ray florets. As a result, we identified 11 CYC-like genes, of which five included complete coding region sequences. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that all five genes were CYC2-like genes. Relative expression analysis of RNA-resequencing reads, qRT-PCR comparison, and gene-silencing treatment all showed that the CYC2c gene is the main genetic mechanism responsible for the shaping of the cornflower-like ray floret phenotype in Gaillardia cultivars. This study expounded our understanding of flower morphology evolution and provides useful insights for improving Compositae breeding.