Transcriptomics analysis unravels the response to low temperature in sensitive and tolerant eggplants

Low temperature is one of the stresses which threaten eggplant during its whole growth period, resulting in the inhibition of growth and development and the loss of yield. It is essential to realize the key genes and pathways in response to low temperature for eggplant breeding. To compare the transcriptomics profiling of two eggplant varieties with differential low temperature tolerance, we conducted the present experiment. Gene ontology (GO) enrichment and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analysis were used for comparing the transcriptomics profile. Here, a total of 2854 and 2697 differentially expressed genes were identified in A153 which was selected from the local variety and locally named ‘Chengdumiqie’ and A80 (CGN22911) following the low temperature treatment. Through GO analysis, we found that sequence-specific DNA binding was the representative of GO term in the unique differentially expressed genes (DEGs) of both varieties. The KEGG analysis of unique DEGs showed that in both varieties plant hormone signal transduction was the most dominant group. Further analysis revealed that several significant differences existed in the plant hormone signal transduction between two varieties. Finally, the analysis of transcription factor families revealed the complex transcriptional regulation in both cultivars. These findings provided a new insight into the molecular mechanisms responsible for response to low temperature and genetic improvement in eggplant.